An increase in the price of fruit and vegetables was the most significant element of the New Zealand food prices index that showed no overall change in January, after consecutive rises in November and December.
The price of fruit and vegetable rose 3.6 percent in January, reflecting seasonally higher prices for lettuce, mandarins and strawberries. The main downward contributor was meat, poultry and fish price, declining 1.8 percent, while grocery prices were down 0.2 percent from December.
Non-alcoholic beverages fell 0.9 percent in January, lead by a 3.8 percent decline in energy drinks.
Restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food prices rose 0.2 percent.
- Hannah Lynch of BusinessDesk
