July food prices increase by 0.70%

Advocata’s Bath Curry Indicator (BCI) which tracks the monthly changes in the price of food recorded a jump of 0.70% for the month of July 2021. 

The month of July experienced an increase in prices comparatively to the month of June, according to the basket of food tracked by the BCI. 

The three items that contributed most to this increase were: Pumpkin, beans and fish (balaya).

For the month of July 2021, the prices of pumpkin showed the largest increase of 66.4%. 

Likewise, the prices of samba rice, beans, dhal and fish (balaya) experienced minor increases in prices as well.

In comparison to the month of July 2020 the BCI has increased by 45% for 2021, which translates that an average family of four that spent Rs. 899.85 on this basket of goods for a week in July 2020 would pay Rs. 1308.10 for the same amount of goods in a week in July 2021. 

The BCI tracks the weekly retail prices in the Colombo market of the most commonly consumed food ingredients that might be used in a typical Bath curry meal. The prices are collected from the ‘Weekly Indicators’ that the Central Bank publishes. 

The BCI Indicator can be accessed at www.bci.advocata.org.

Advocata is an independent policy think tank based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It conducts research, provides commentary, and holds events to promote sound policy ideas compatible with a free society in Sri Lanka.