Energy prices drive P.E.I. inflation deep into double digits
CBC
Hopes that inflation may have peaked on P.E.I. were dashed by the consumer price index for May, released by Statistics Canada Wednesday morning.
Inflation on the Island got significantly worse. The annual rate in May was 11.1 per cent, up from 8.9 per cent in April.
Once again, as has been the case for months, P.E.I.'s inflation rate was the highest in the country.
Canada's rate was 7.7 per cent.
The next highest was in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, where the rate was 8.8 per cent.
Energy costs, and to a lesser extent rent, are the major factors driving P.E.I.'s inflation beyond the national level.
Inflation for fuel oil and other fuels in Canada was an astonishing 95 per cent, but it was almost a third higher on P.E.I. Gasoline was up 58 per cent, as compared to 48 per cent nationally.
The consumer price index for rent eased slightly, dropping from a 15.3 per cent inflation rate in March to 9.0 per cent in May. The rate was still double that in Canada as a whole.
In some categories inflation on the Island was lower than Canada's.
Fresh fruits and vegetables were up 8.2 per cent on P.E.I., but 10.7 in Canada. Owned accommodation costs were up 4.1 per cent on the Island, and 7.2 per cent in the country as a whole.
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