Barranquilla is no stranger to the inflationary pressures affecting not only Colombia but globally as well, registering an annual inflation rate of 10.64% in April. In this context, food and non-alcoholic drinks are the ones that increase in price the most and their annual inflation rate reaches 26.60%, slightly above the national average for this group, which is 26.17%.
Although annual inflation in Barranquilla is 1.41 percentage points above the national average, which stood at 9.23% in April, it is not among the highest in the country, a group led by Santa Marta at 12.29%.
When detailing the other spending groups in which they show increases, it appears that restaurants and hotels have the second highest increase, at 19.27% per year. It should be remembered that this also includes street meals or corrientazo, which have been on the rise for several months due to higher food prices.
It’s important to point out that food carries a greater weight in the family basket than other items that are also rising, as is the case for furniture, household items, and regular home maintenance, which register an annual inflation rate of 13.87%.
Another group of spending that is rising in the Atlantic capital is that of alcoholic beverages and tobacco, which have an annual inflation rate of 7.62%. This year, inflation in Barranquilla has been 6.10% so far, while the monthly indicator was 1.28% in April.
In terms of public services, the group’s spending on housing, water, electricity, cas and other fuels showed an annual inflation rate in the city of 6.06%.
In the specific case of electricity, monthly inflation in Barranquilla was 0.90%, while annual inflation was 20.70%.
The gas service, in turn, had a negative monthly inflation rate of 1.35%, while the annual inflation rate was 9.37%.
Laura Peña, an economist at BBVA Research for Colombia, assures that upside risks to prices remain nationally due to external reasons such as the uncertainty surrounding the war in Ukraine and the effects of China’s “zero covid” policies on global supply chains .
They will also affect internal factors such as the government’s decision on gasoline prices, effects on imports due to the depreciation of the exchange rate, a shock larger than the estimate of the price increase at the global level.
Source: El heraldo
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
