Today, the Statistical Institute of Belize published its latest statistics on the consumer price index, external trade, and the consumer confidence index for November 2024.
Consumer Price Index
Data from the Statistical Institute of Belize’s monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) survey indicated that, for November 2024, the All-Items CPI, which summarizes price levels across all consumer goods and services categories, stood at 120.1. This increased from 117.7 recorded in November 2023, reflecting a national inflation rate of 2 percent for the month. As has been observed throughout the year, the main drivers of inflation were higher costs for food products, restaurant services, and home rentals. In contrast, there were notable declines in prices for fuel and information and communication equipment. In the first eleven months of 2024, the year-to-date inflation rate stood at 3.3 percent. Most of the major CPI categories saw increases during this period when compared to the same period in 2023, with the overall rise primarily fuelled by higher prices in the ‘Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages’ category, which rose by 5.6 percent.
Click the following link to read more: Consumer Price Index, November 2024
Merchandise Trade
Belize’s total imports of goods for November 2024 were valued at $230.4 million. This represented an increase of 10.2 percent or $21.3 million from November 2023, when imports were valued at $209.1 million. Merchandise imports for the first eleven months of the year, January to November 2024, amounted to $2.678 billion. This represented a 9.3 percent or $227.3 million increase from last year when imports were valued at $2.451 billion.
Total domestic exports for November 2024 amounted to $22.3 million, down by 2.3 percent or $0.5 million compared to exports from November 2023, valued at $22.8 million. From January to November 2024, merchandise exports totaled $385.8 million, up slightly by 0.4 percent or $1.5 million from the same period in 2023, when exports were valued at $384.3 million.
Click the following link to read more: External Trade, November 2024
Consumer Confidence Index
The Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) is an indicator that measures consumers’ sentiments concerning general economic conditions within the country, their household’s economic situation, and making major household purchases. It provides an early indication of future household spending, investing, and saving. With household spending being a major contributor to the overall economy, this in turn is an early indicator of future economic growth.
The CCI is an index number ranging from 0 (completely pessimistic) to 100 (completely optimistic). Generally, a value greater than 50 indicates consumers are more optimistic about the economy and their economic prospects. The CCI is comprised of three components: (1) perceptions about how present macroeconomic conditions and the household’s financial situation compare to twelve months prior; (2) expectations about economic conditions and the household’s financial situation over the coming twelve months; and (3) perceptions about whether the present is a good time for making major purchases of durable goods such as homes, cars, furniture, and appliances. An index is also produced for these three components to provide more detailed information on what is driving consumer sentiment. The CCI intends to provide information on how consumer sentiment moves in the short term; therefore, it is usually analyzed month-over-month.
For November 2024, the national Consumer Confidence Index stood at 44.7, an increase of 0.9 percent from 44.3 in October of 2024. This modest improvement indicates a return to the general upward trend in the CCI after the declines seen in August and September of this year.
Click the following link to read more: Consumer Confidence Index, November 2024
