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Inflation Rises in Abu Dhabi

However, it dropped to a record 0.85 per cent compared with 14.69 per cent for 2008 on a year-on-year basis, said the Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi, or SCAD, in a statement.

SCAD said that a low rate of inflation does not mean lower prices, but a lower rate of increase in prices. This decline in the rate of inflation reflects a marked stability in the general level of prices in the emirate of Abu Dhabi throughout the period, it said.

The latest data point to a drop of 0.41 per cent in the CPI for the month of November 2009, versus the index for November 2008, due to a decline in prices of the major commodities groups, led by clothing and footwear that showed a fall of 11.18 per cent. It was followed by food and non-alcoholic beverages, recreation and transport, showing a price fall of 4.69 per cent, 4.84 per cent and 0.41 per cent respectively.

These commodity groups have 47.36 per cent weightage to the consumer basket for the emirate.

In contrast, the SCAD said that the prices of the goods and services within the commodity group led by education have a weightage of 44.93 per cent.

Education showed a rise of 20.11 per cent, alcoholic beverages & tobacco showed a rise of 16.91 per cent.

On the other hand, SCAD’s CPI report reveals stability in the prices of the items comprising the communication group. The chart shows that CPI for November 2009 had shrunk by 0.41 per cent to 117.05 points in November 2009, compared to 117.53 points in November 2008.

haseebhaider@khaleejtimes.com