By RIA Novosti,
MOSCOW, February : Consumer prices in Russia grew 2.4% in January, the country’s top statistics body said on Thursday.
Food prices grew 1.4% and non-food prices were up 0.7% while the cost of household services increased 6.3% in the reporting period, the State Statistics Service said.
Sugar (11.5%) and fruit and vegetables (4.7%) demonstrated the highest price growth among foodstuffs while it was the cost of pharmaceuticals and fuel (3-3.7%) that showed the biggest rises in the non-food category, the State Statistics Service said.
At the same time, the prices of gasoline and diesel fuel continued their decline first started in December, falling in January by 4.2% and 3.7%, respectively, the State Statistics Service said.
The Russian government expects inflation to stay within 13% in 2009 compared with 13.3% in 2008.