Spring and summer clothing stores raise prices

Clothing sold.Clothing sold. Photo Norway Today Media

With winter clothes on their way out of stores, and the spring and summer collections on the way in, the consumer price index rose by 0.3% between February to March.

Overall, the consumer price index rose by 2.4% in March over the same period last year. The reason for the rise is partly due to the higher prices for clothing, stated Statistics Norway (SSB).

From February to March, many clothing stores replace their last selection, and winter garments that have been sold at reduced prices disappear off the shelves, and the new spring and summer clothing are put on display.

All subgroups of clothing rose markedly from February to March, and this gave an overall price rise for clothing of 7.7%.

According to SSB, this is a more powerful upswing for March prices than it has been for the past five years.

Due to the lower prices of gasoline, diesel and electricity, the prices of energy products was down by 1.8%. The booksellers’ annual Mammut sales caused a decrease in book prices of 17.5% over February.

This is a major change from last year, when the price of energy products and books both rose during the same period.

The so-called ‘core inflation’ rose to 1.7%, up from 1.6% in February. Overall inflation was at 2.4%, slightly lower than the DNB, Nordea, and Norges banks had expected.

‘The inflation figures this time were well in line with expectations for lower outcomes than were expected in January and February.

The figures should be fairly neutral for the setting of interest rates’, wrote DNB bank.

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today