The Consumer Price Index rose by 2.4% in June compared with June 2013, following a 2.3% increase in May.
The CPI for goods increased by 2.6% in the 12 months to June while the CPI for services was up 2.1% over the same period.
Gasoline prices increased 5.4% from June 2013, after rising 6.2% in May. Overall, energy prices grew 6.7% between June 2013 and June 2014, following an 8.4% annualized rate of increase in May. Excluding energy, the Consumer Price Index rose 1.9% in June, after growing by 1.7% in May.
Food prices rose 2.9% in the 12 months to June, up from the increase of 2.3% in May. The cost of food purchased from stores in the 12 months to June grew by 3.2%, after rising 2.5% in the previous month. The increase was led by meat prices, up 9.4% from a year earlier and fresh vegetables, up 9.5%. Prices for food purchased from restaurants advanced 2.3% on a year-over-year basis, up from the 2.1% increase reported in May.
Costs associated with shelter rose 2.9% in June over June 2013, after increasing 3.4% in May. Consumers paid more for electricity (+4.2 %), natural gas and property taxes.
Consumers paid 1.9% more for household operations, furnishings and equipment in June compared to June 2013, after an increase of 1.6% recorded in May.
Transportation prices gained 2.2% in the 12 months to June 2014, following a 2.7% increase in May. In addition to gasoline, consumers paid 1.6% more for the purchase of passenger vehicles, after rising 2.0% in May.
In the 12 months to June 2014, consumer prices rose in all ten provinces. The CPI grew the most in Ontario over June 2013 (+3.0%) followed by Newfoundland and Labrador (+2.5%) and both Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan (+2.2%). The smallest gain in the CPI occurred in Quebec (+1.7%). Ontario’s increase was mainly attributable to natural gas prices , which were up 38.4% from a year earlier. Gasoline prices in Ontario increased by 9.4% from June 2013.