NordenBladet – Price growth has slowed down every month in Latvia since January. Latvia’s June inflation was 7.9 percent. However, food and non-alcoholic beverages became more expensive by 14.4 percent in a year-on-year comparison. Compared to May, the price of food decreased by 0.1 percent.
Latvian experts said that although food prices will continue to fall, they will not return to pre-war levels.
“Prices should fall now. But to think that this fall will continue all the time, it will not happen. It is simply not possible,” said Inguna Gulbe, an expert in the field of agriculture.
Noris Kruzitis, head of the Union of Grocers, said that food inflation will fall by three to four percent in the coming months.
Guntis Gutmanis, head of the Cooperation Council of Agricultural Organizations, said that the war in Ukraine, the weather and what is happening on world markets have a big impact on food prices in Latvia. He pointed out that forecasts may not always hold true.
“If we remember what happened with the pandemic, when we just closed the borders and couldn’t bring anything in, when we look at the war in Ukraine, I think economic analysts may soon be out of a job because their predictions may or may not turn out to be true ,” Gutmanis said.