High Inflation in Quebec: Rising Prices in Food, Housing, and Wages

2023-10-18 04:00:00

Inflation remains high in Quebec. In fact, the consumer price index has increased by 4.8% over the past year, the highest rate in Canada.

Even worse. Over three years, from September 2020 to September 2023, inflation in Quebec jumped by 17.3%, thus exceeding by 1.5 percentage points the increase recorded (+15.8%) in the entire country. Canada.

Gasoline wins the prize in Quebec inflation with a majestic price surge of 70% when we go to the pump.

FOOD

Are households right to complain about the rising cost of the grocery basket? Yes.

As proof, the price of all food in Quebec exploded by 23.3% over these three years, or 2 percentage points more than the Canadian increase.

For the period from September 2020 to September 2023, here is a skewer of savory increases that we were given in the food basket:

Fresh meat: +27.8% Beef: +35.8% Butter: +23.0% Cheese: +25.9% Bakery: +25.7% Cereals: +29.0% Fresh fruit: +24.4 % Fresh vegetables: +22.0%

HOUSING

On the housing side, here too we have had our wallets stripped by the cost of living.

Overall speaking, in Quebec we experienced an increase of 18.3% between September 2020 and September 2023, just as is the case across the country.

Specifically, note the following inflationary variations:

Rent: +15.2% Owned accommodation: +20.1% Replacement cost by owner: +28.6% Home insurance: +19.1% Maintenance and repair: +20.0% Oil and other fuels: +116%

Among the biggest victims of inflation are households who have been forced to renew their mortgages. The cost of mortgage interest over the last 24 months has skyrocketed by 41.5%!

LATE SALARIES

During this same three-year period, have wages increased as much as the consumer price index? No.

In light of data collected by Statistics Canada and the Institute of Statistics of Quebec, average weekly earnings in Quebec increased by 12.9% during this three-year period.

This means that Quebec workers have generally become “impoverished” over the last three years. The increase in wages shows a downward deviation of 4.4 percentage points compared to the 17.3% increase in the consumption basket.

From January to September 2023, average remuneration in Quebec amounted to $1,148.67 per week, compared to $1,017.65 during the period from January to September 2020, or $131 more per week.

If wages had kept pace with inflation, average weekly earnings would have increased by $176 instead of $131. People would have had an additional income of $2,340 per year before taxes.

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