Prices of basic consumer goods fluctuating wildly

The average retail price levels in effect on December 7, 2022, compared to November 9, 2022, show that prices for basic consumer goods are staggering. The largest increases in flour prices, which rose by up to 14%, were contrasted with significant price increases in most frozen goods, which reached 9.5%.

This was demonstrated by the Consumer Protection Service's Price Observatory, which is conducted on a monthly basis and includes fixed products and price-taking locations with the goal, according to the Service, of monitoring and drawing conclusions from price fluctuations of basic consumer goods.

According to the Price Observatory's Price Index, oil prices increased 35% from December of last year, followed by cheese prices increasing 20.5% and pasta prices increasing 17.4%.

The Consumer Protection Service clarifies that the Price Observatory is created solely to assist/provide general information to consumers and does not constitute advice in any way.

"The Price Observatories are not intended to and cannot replace the market research that each consumer must conduct based on his or her own preferences, data, and needs, nor are they intended to recommend to consumers which points of sale to choose," it adds.

It also states that some of the products included in the Observatory have qualitative differences that cannot be accounted for in the results of a Price Observatory, and to that end, the Consumer Protection Agency encourages consumers to conduct meaningful market research before making purchases in order to find products and prices that meet their needs.

Average selling price

According to the Price Observatory, the average selling price for fresh milk ranged from €1.56 to €3.03 on 7 December, remaining relatively stable compared to prices on 9 November.

The average price of rice per grain ranged between €1.53 and €5.66. Some products saw price drops of up to 7%, while others saw price increases of up to 22%.

In addition, the average price of yogurt ranged from €1.87 to €4.41, representing an increase of up to 5% and a decrease of up to 1.2% from the previous month on November 9.

Coffee prices ranged between €2.79 and €7.53, with some increasing by up to 3% and others decreasing by up to 6%.

The average price of flour/sugar/eggs ranged from €1.30 to €2.99, with flour prices decreasing by up to 14% across all products tracked by the Observatory, while sugar and eggs increased by 6.1% and 3.8%, respectively.

The average price of cheese ranged from €1.81 to €6.76, indicating an increase of up to 5.6% in some cases and a decrease of up to 3.1% in others compared to 9 November.

Cereals were priced between €2.38 and €3.85, while cold cuts were priced between €2.58 and €3.88.

The average price of tinned food ranged from €1.16 to €8.09, the average price of water ranged from €2.20 to €3.01, and the average price of frozen food ranged from €3.54 to €17.93, with some products increasing in price by up to 9.5% and others decreasing by up to 7.2%.

Furthermore, the average price of pasta was between €1.30 and €1.70, while the average price of vegetables was between €0.39 and €1.75.

The average price of fresh local meat ranged from €3.75 to €12.11, while the average price of fresh fish ranged from €8.04 to €25.65, according to the Price Observatory.

Bakery products had an average price range of €1.26 to €1.92, while oils/seeds had an average price range of €0.47 to €12.57.