Cost of Living Continues to Rise
The Consumer Price Index in Cuba experienced a monthly increase of 1.6% during the month of April, according to the latest publication from the National Office of Statistics and Information, an entity that maintains that the cost of living maintains a growing trend during the first four months of the year.
Although 1% may seem like a minor increase at first glance, the cumulative nature of inflation means that each small increase widens the gap between family income and the prices of available products.
This pressure becomes much more evident when it is confirmed that the year-on-year variation of 14.8% recorded to date means that Cubans have spent nearly fifteen more pesos for every hundred they invested during the past year.
The sectors that most pushed this increase were food, which contributed practically half of the month’s impact, due to the rising cost of products such as rice, pork, and mutton; while transportation escalated driven by double-digit increases in truck, van, and mototaxi fares, amid fuel shortages.
The analysis of the general Consumer Price Index at the close of April stood at 541 points, taking the year 2010 as a comparison base, which means that the official cost of living in Cuba has multiplied more than five times in just 16 years — a reality that can be reversed with substantial increases in production and foreign investment that capitalize on basic sectors of the economy.
