After four months of decline, the Basic Food Index for January increase by 1.4%.
The BFI monitors prices of basic food items in 14 major to mid size stores in the territory.
Prices for half of the food items increased in January. The biggest increase was the cost of fish which jumped 7.8% followed by chicken which went up 5.2%.
A lb of fresh fish was $4.77 in December but increased to $5.14 last month. A 10 kilogram case of chicken was $18.31 in December but increased to $19.27 in January.
Other food items whose prices went up include eggs (4.6%), rice (4.5%), bread (1.1%), turkey tail (0.8%), sugar (0.6%), pork spare ribs (0.5%), corned beef (0.5%), and ice cream (0.2%).
Food items whose prices dropped in January compared to December are taro (-3.0%), tuna (-0.8%), butter (-0.8%), and mayonnaise (-0.2%). A lb of taro was $2.31 in December but dropped to $2.24 in January.
A can of Iapana tuna sold for $2.37 in December and dropped by 2 cents in January.
Items whose prices remained the same include soda, milk, water, sausage, bananas and saimin.
