Retail pricing increases are greatly exaggerated, writes Kevin Grier, senior market analyst at the George Morris Centre in Guelph in a report published in November.
Year over year, September prices jumped seven per cent, according to Statistics Canada’s Consumer Price Index. It’s the biggest increase in 10 years. The average over 10 years is two per cent and decreases were common.
Grier charted price increases and decreases and pointed out that, in September 2007, prices were actually dropping from the year before, accentuating the gain in the subsequent year. The increase in food was largely due to the impact of the Canadian dollar on the value of imports such as fruits and vegetables. Bakery prices also rose by 14 per cent, buoyed up by higher commodity prices.