Sunday, August 20, 2023

Cost of Living Update

Statistics Canada has released the Consumer Price Index (cost of living) numbers for July 2023. The numbers for Manitoba still show that life has been significantly more expensive over the past 12 months.

The goods and services in the CPI basket are divided into eight major components: food; shelter; household operations, furnishings, and equipment; clothing and footwear; transportation; health and personal care; recreation, education, and reading; and alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, and recreational cannabis. Weight is given to each item based on the percentage of income Canadians spend on those items.

July’s Manitoba CPI was 2.6 percent, while the 12-month trailing average is 6.1 percent. This means that in Manitoba in July, it cost 2.6 percent more to purchase the basket of goods defined by Statistics Canada than in July 2022. But looking back at the 12 months leading up to July 2023, it cost on average 6.1 percent more to buy that basket of goods.

The numbers for January 2023? The month of January was 6.9 percent more expensive than January 2022, and the 12-month trailing average was 8 percent. So, inflation is moving in the right direction, but is still quite high.

Cost of Living Update

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