Inflation for July 2022 increased by 7.15% when compared to prices in July 2021. The industries that mainly absorbed this year-over-year increase in their prices were Transportation (14.4%), Food and Beverages (9.1%), Other goods and services (4.5%), Housing (3.1%), Education and Communication (3.0%), Recreation (2.2%), Medical Care (1.6%), and Apparel (1.6%).
As for comparison in behavior with June 2022’s prices (month-over-month change), the index for July 2022 shows a 0.40% growth. Compared to growth between May and June of this same year, which was at 1.18%, prices in July did not increment as much. The main groups that reflected an increase in their price index were Education and Communication (1.8%), Other Goods and Services (1.2 %), Apparel (0.9%), Food and Beverage (0.6%), Recreation (0.3%), and Housing (0.2%). It is also worth noting that Transportation saw a decrease in its price index of 0.2%.
Heading into 2022’s second semester, the scenario for the Puerto Rican economy does not paint the best picture. Seeing as though federal funding that went straight into individuals’ pockets was put to a halt, added to the U.S. economy’s recent tendencies that signaled the current state of recession, it’s worth noting the significance of the diminution of the growth rate, especially when seeing as how this diminution was due to transportation prices decreasing. This last part gives us an idea of how petroleum market prices have a substantial impact on our global economy.
