The Price Consumer Index(IPC) in the metropolitan area of Caracas varied 0.5% in September, a smaller variation than that of August (1.3%), thus maintaining its downward trend of the last three months. This last variation is the smallest in 44 months.
With this result, the accumulated IPC variation until September of 2004 is 14.7%, below the figure registered for the same period in the year 2003 (20.6%).

The decrease in the price variation rate for September was the combined result of a greater offer of agricultural goods and the 1% reduction of the Tax on Aggregated Value (IVA), from 16% to 15%.

The deceleration of the index is also a result of a decrease in the prices of the non regulated items, from 1.9% to -0.3%; despite the fact that the goods and services subjected to regulation increased an average 0.7% (from 0.7% to 1.4%), mainly because of adjustments in education services that are traditionally made at this time of the year.

Published in Quantum No.35

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