Although inflation in Moscow was less than in Russia on average past year, the growth in prices for basic food was much higher there.
Photo: Nikolay Cyiganov
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Moscow Leads the Price Race
Although inflation in Moscow was less than in Russia on average past year, the growth in prices for basic food was much higher there, Interfax.ru reported with reference to official statistics.
At first sight, the growth in Moscow prices doesn’t appear particularly agitating – the annual inflation was 10.2 percent, 1.7 percent less than in Russia on average. In line with the general trend, the prices for food and paid-up services manifested the greatest growth. Food prices, for instance, stepped up 13.6 percent vs. the country’s average of nearly 18 percent. The rates for housing and communal services, medical services, education and the like soared 14.1 percent.
But people in Moscow are hardly optimistic because of the average statistics. The price for eggs, for instance, grew 45 percent, cheese stepped up 41 percent, milk grew 38 percent, butter and oil increased 37 percent, curds grew 30 percent and sour cream gained 22 percent, i.e. the average growth for most popular and essential food reached 35.5 percent. What’s more, the bread prices increased 15.5 percent, vegetables grew 29 percent and potatoes added another 14 percent.
But alcohol prices showed the moderate growth. Cognac grew 10.5 percent, vodka gained 7.3 percent, sparkling wine stepped up 6.4 percent and wine grew 4.7 percent.
And last but not least, the prices in Moscow appear very high even in comparison with the country’s northern capital, St. Petersburg. A kilogram of butter, for instance, costs 213 rubles in Moscow, 143 rubles in the Moscow region and 179.9 rubles in St. Petersburg, the prices for a liter of milk are 31.45 rubles, 28.8 rubles and 28.88 rubles respectively and a dozen of eggs costs 40 rubles in Moscow, the Moscow region has 36.5 rubles and St. Petersburg benefits from 34.4 rubles.
www.kommersant.com
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