Inflation Rising in
Guatemala
Guatemala´s year-on-year
inflation increased to
13.56 percent in late
June, due to pressure
from international
markets and bad weather
conditions, according to
the National Statistics
Institute (INE).
The institute reported
that consumer prices had
not increased so rapidly
since 2001.
INE Manager Jose Ramos
Lam said inflation is
caused by high prices of
some basic cereals, and
oil and byproducts on
the international
market.
Heavy rains during the
first months of the
rainy season damaged
crops of corn, beans,
fruit and vegetables,
causing prices to
skyrocket.
According to the INE,
the most affected
regions so far are the
metropolitan area, which
has a population of more
than two million, and
the departments of Peten,
Huehuetenango, San
Marcos, Quetzaltenango
and Chimaltenango.
Luis Arroyo, director of
Indexes and Statistics
at the INE, said the
national currency, the
quetzal, has lost 44
percent of its
purchasing power
compared to seven years
ago.
Salaries, however, have
not increased in the
same proportion during
the said period, so
people have been forced
to reduce consumption
and buy low-quality food
to make ends meet.
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