The main sectors that contributed to the falling inflation rate were: Clothing, gasoline and fuels and footwear
The Central Bureau of Statistics reported last Monday that the consumer price index for the month of July fell by 0.3%. Market expectations had been for a rise of 0.2-0.3%.
The July CPI shows that Israeli inflation changed direction and declined by 0.3% for the first time since February 2010. This is a shift direction after the CPI rose by 0.4% in June 2011.
The main sectors that contributed to the falling inflation rate during July were: Clothing (8.6% decrease), gasoline and fuels (3.0% decrease) and footwear (6.3% decrease).
On the other hand, the following sectors increased during last month: Housing prices rose by 0.4%, and rent prices rose by 0.7%. The CPI without fruit and vegetables increased by 3.5%; the CPI without energy increased by 3.1%; and the CPI without housing rose by 2.7%.
As a result of the CPI drop, the actual inflation rate for the past 12 months (the July 2011 index compared to July 2010) now totals 3.4% - exceeding the upper limit of the target range set by the government (1-3%) by only 0.4%. The inflation trend in the past four months is now much lower, totaling 0.6%. Inflation in the first seven months of 2011 stands at 1.9%.
