AMMAN — The consumer price index (CPI), a measurement of inflation, rose by 5.6 per cent in 2013 compared with 2012, according to the Department of Statistics (DoS).
The inflation rate by the end of last year almost came in line with the expectations of the International Monetary Fund, which estimated inflation in 2013 to reach 5.5 per cent.
The DoS report said that the rise in inflation was attributed mainly to higher transportation prices, which went up by 11.4 per cent last year, fuel and electricity, which, according to the official figures, showed the highest increase in prices after it rose by 19.7 per cent.
Other commodities and services that pushed inflation up in 2013 included rentals, which rose by 4.5 per cent, vegetables by 14.3 per cent and fruits by 17 per cent, the DoS bulletin showed.
The official reports indicated that the increase in several commodity prices was coupled with a drop in the prices of cigarettes and tobacco products by 8.5 per cent, medical care by 1.5 per cent, cereal products by 1 per cent and cooking oil by 1.4 per cent.
In December, the CPI went up 3.3 per cent when compared with the same month of 2012, according to the data e-mailed to The Jordan Times.
