IHSAN YOUSSEF

DOHA THE Consumer Price Index (CPI) in May showed a slight increase of 0.2 percent with 110.1, compared to the CPI in April, Qatar Statistics Authority (QSA) said on Wednesday.

A comparison with the CPI in April displayed an increase by 1.1 percent in the furniture, textiles and home appliance sub-groups, 1 percent rise in entertainment, recreation and culture categories, 0.1 percent increase in transport & communications sectors and 0.8 percent in the food and beverages groups.

Meanwhile, there was a decline of 0.6 percent in in respect of miscellaneous goods and services, 0.2 percent fall in rent, fuel and energy sector and 0.1 percent decrease in garments and footwear categories, while there was no change in healthcare and medical services cost.

A year-by-year comparison, showed an increase of 1.1 percent in the CPI in May 2012 when compared with the same month last year.

There were also increases in all major groups, with the exception of rent, fuel and energy sector, which recorded a drop of 6 percent.

The highest rises in the index in the month were recorded in the entertainment, recreation and culture categories with 7.3 percent, followed by furniture, textiles and home appliances groups with 6.2 percent, miscellaneous goods and services 4.9 percent and food and beverages with 3.7 percent increase.