Inflation edges closer to double digits in June

Inflation in Cyprus in June edged closer to double-digits driven by the soaring prices in electricity and energy on the backdrop of the war in Ukraine.

According to the Statistical Service of Cyprus (CyStat) the annual inflation rate climbed to 9.6% in June with the Consumer Price Index reaching 112.4 units from 111.37 units the month before.

Of the 9.65 unit change compared with June 2021, almost 55% of the impact is attributed to fuel prices (3.84 units) and electricity (1.55 units).

For the period January-June 2022, the CPI increased by 7.8% compared to the corresponding period of the previous year, CyStat added.

According to CyStat, the largest annual changes by economic origin, when compared to the index of June 2021, were recorded in Petroleum Products with 46.1%, Electricity with 40.4% and Agricultural goods with 7.3%.

In comparison to the index of the previous month, the largest positive change was monitored in Petroleum Products 7.9%, while the largest negative change was monitored in Agricultural goods with a percentage drop of 7.8%, CyStat said.

Meanwhile, and most likely as a result of inflation, building permits dropped by an annual 10.7% in April declining to 560 from 627 in the respective period of last year.

According to CyStat, the total value of building permits issued in April amounted to €144.8 million in April 2022 at a total area of 127.1 thousand square meters compared with €230.6 million and 192,8 sq.m in April last year. These building permits allowed the construction of 601 housing units.

During the period January – April 2022, 2,511 building permits were issued compared to 2,524 in the corresponding period of the previous year, recording a decrease of 0.5%.

The total value of these permits decreased by 1.6% and the total area by 6.7%. The number of housing units recorded a decrease of 7.4%.

Building permits constitute a leading indicator of future activity in the construction sector, CyStat said.