The Extended National Consumer Price Index (IPCA) increased 0.73% in December, being 0.22 percentage points (p.p.) below the rate of 0.95% registered in November. As a result, the year of 2021 ended with a change of 10.06%, above the rate of 4.52% recorded in 2020. In December 2020, the change had been 1.35%.

All the groups of products and services surveyed recorded price rises in December. The highest change came from Wearing apparel (2.06%), which accelerated in relation to November (0.95%). It was followed by Household articles (1.37%) and Food and beverages (0.84%), the latter contributing with the biggest impact on the month´s index (0.17 p.p.). In addition, the changes in Housing (0.74%) and Transportation (0.58%) stood out, though lower than those reported in the previous month (1.03% and 3.35%, respectively). The group of Health and personal care, in turn, rose 0.75%, after dropping 0.57% in November. The others stayed between the rate of 0.05% in Education and 0.56% in Personal expenses.

The result of the group of Wearing apparel (2.06%) was mainly influenced by the rises in men’s wearing apparel (2.53%) and women’s wearing apparel (2.00%), which jointly contributed with an impact of 0.05 p.p. to the December´s IPCA. The other items of this group also rose, highlighted by children´s wearing apparel (2.11%) and footwear and accessories (1.92%). The prices of jewels increased 1.09%, after dropping 0.28% in the previous month.

In the group of Household articles (1.37%), the major contributions came from furniture (2.07%) and household appliances and equipment (1.77%). It should be also highlighted the acceleration in the items TV, sound and computer (0.70%) and repair and maintenance (0.79%), whose changes had been 0.03% and 0.06% in November, respectively.

In Food and beverages (0.84%), the sub-group of food at home changed from a rise of 0.04% in November to 0.79% in December. The major highlight was fruits (8.60%), whose prices had fallen in the previous month (-0.43%). The same happened with meat, which rose 1.38% after the drop (-1.38%) reported in November. Moreover, the prices of ground coffee (8.24%) increased for the tenth consecutive month, accumulating a rise of 50.11% in the period between March and December. Onions was another highlight, rising 20.94%. On the dropping side, the retreat in the prices of potatoes (-14.55%), tomatoes (-9.21%) and long-life milk (-2.89%) should be mentioned.

Food away from home, in turn, changed from -0.25% in November to 0.98% in December. Snacks and meals registered similar changes (1.08%) and jointly contributed with 0.06 p.p. to the month´s index.

The group of Housing (0.74%) decelerated in relation to the previous month (1.03%) due to electricity (0.50%), whose rise had been 1.24% in November. The “water scarcity” tariff flag has been in effect since September, adding R$14.20 to the electricity bill per 100 kWh consumed. The changes in the areas varied from -2.88% in Goiânia, where PIS/Cofins was reduced, to 5.61% in Porto Alegre, where an adjustment of 14.70% was reported in one of the concessionaires surveyed, in force since November 22. In Rio Branco (1.25%), the fare was adjusted by 10.66% on December 13.

Still in Housing, the rise in piped gas (6.55%) was due to the adjustments of 17.64% in São Paulo (11.56%), in force since December 10, and of 6.90% in Rio de Janeiro (0.61%), in force since November 1st. Water and sewage fees (0.65%) also rose in December, as a consequence of the adjustments of 9.05% in Salvador (8.74%), in force since November 29, and of 9.86% in Rio de Janeiro (2.89%), in force since November 8.

The deceleration recorded in the group of Transportation (from 3.35% to 0.58%) was mainly due to the drop in the price of fuels (-0.94%), after seven months of rises in a row. Besides gasoline (-0.67%), the prices of ethanol (-2.96%) and diesel fuel (-0.33%) also retreated. Vehicular gas (0.68%) was the only to rise in December. Among the other sub-items that comprise this group, the highlights were airfare (10.28%), which impacted 0.06 p.p. on the month´s index, and ride sharing (11.75%), which contributed with 0.03 p.p. Moreover, the prices of new (1.85%) and used cars (0.42%) remained rising.

After dropping 0.57% in November, the group of Health and personal care reported a rise of 0.75% in December. The prices of the items of personal hygiene increased 2.32% and contributed with 0.08 p.p. to the month´s index. Pharmaceuticals, in turn, rose 0.06%, decelerating in relation to the previous month (1.13%).

As for regional indexes, all the areas surveyed recorded increases in December. The highest change occurred in the municipality of Rio Branco (1.18%), due to the items of personal hygiene (3.34%) and new cars (3.37%). On the other hand, the lowest result was reported in Brasília (0.46%), where the drop in the prices of gasoline weighted (-3.38%).

In order to estimate the month´s index, the prices collected from November 30 to December 28, 2021 (reference) were compared with the prices in force from October 29 to November 29, 2021 (base). The IPCA has been calculated by the IBGE since 1980. It refers to households with monthly income of 1 to 40 minimum wages, whatever the source. It encompasses ten metropolitan areas in Brazil, besides the municipalities of Goiânia, Campo Grande, Rio Branco, São Luís, Aracaju and Brasília.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the IBGE suspended on-site price collection on March 18, 2020. As of this date, prices began to be collected through other means, such as surveys on Internet sites, by phone or email. In the beginning of July 2021, the IBGE gradually resumed on-site data collection at some establishments, as provided for in Ordinance no. 207/2021 of the Presidency of the IBGE.

IPCA closes 2021 with rise of 10.06%

The IPCA ended the year with a change of 10.06%, above the rate of 4.52% registered in 2020. The table below shows the monthly changes of the index in 2021.

The result of 2021 was mainly influenced by the group of Transportation, which recorded the highest change (21.03%) and the biggest impact (4.19 p.p.) on the cumulative index in the year. It was followed by Housing (13.05%), which contributed with 2.05 p.p., and Food and beverages (7.94%), with an impact of 1.68 p.p. Altogether, the three groups accounted for nearly 79% of the IPCA in 2021. It is also worth mentioning the cumulative changes in the groups of Household articles (12.07%) and Wearing apparel (10.31%). The latter had been the only group with deflation in the previous year.

The rise of 21.03% in the group of Transportation was mainly related to the behavior of the price of fuels (49.02%) along 2021. Gasoline, the sub-item with the highest weight in the IPCA, increased 47.49% and ethanol, 62.23%. The prices of fuels only dropped in the months of April and December. The result of this group was also impacted by the rise in new (16.16%) and used cars (15.05%), especially in the second semester of the year. Lastly, the changes in airfare (17.59%), whose most intense rises occurred in July, September and October (35.22%, 28.19% and 33.86%, respectively) and in ride sharing, which rose 33.75% in 2021, in contrast to what occurred in 2020, when prices retreated 5.77%, should be mentioned.

In Housing (13.05%), the major contribution (0.98 p.p.) came from electricity (21.21%). The yellow tariff flag, which added R$1.343 to each 100 kilowatt-hour (kWh) consumed, was in force in the first four months of the year. In May, the red tariff flag level 1 was activated, and, in the following three months, the red tariff flag level 2 was activated, changing the charge from R$6.243 in June to R$9.492 in July, due to the deterioration of the water crisis. The problems in the generation of energy also led to the creation of a new tariff flag, called Water Scarcity, which added R$14.20 at each 100 kWh consumed. That flag went into force in September and should be maintained until April 2022. The changes in the extra charge were key to the result of that item in the IPCA, especially in July and September.

Another highlight in Housing was bottled gas (36.99%), whose prices increased in all the month of 2021. As a result, that sub-item contributed with the second biggest impact within the group (0.41 p.p.).

In the group of Food and beverages, the change of 7.94% was lower than in the previous year (14.09%), when it contributed with the biggest impact among the groups surveyed. In food at home (8.24%), the highest rises came from ground coffee (50.24%), which impacted 0.15 p.p., cassava (48.08%) and refined sugar (47.87%). In contrast, sub-items like potatoes (-22.82%) and rice (-16.88%) dropped their prices in 2021. It is worth reminding that rice was one of the major components of the rise of this group in 2020, when it increased 76.01%.

In Household articles (12.07%), the highlights were the items furniture (15.73%) and household appliances and equipment (13.62%). In addition, the prices of TV, sound and computers (10.55%) also rose in 2021.

The group of Wearing apparel (10.31%) closed 2021 with the fourth highest change among the groups. The rise in the prices in the second semester, especially in October (1.80%) and December (2.06%) was key to that result. The items that registered the highest changes were jewels (12.76%) and men’s wearing apparel (12.60%), which jointly contributed with 0.16 p.p. to the year´s index.

Concerning the regional indexes, the metropolitan area of Curitiba (12.73%) recorded the highest change in 2021, mainly influenced by the rise of 51.78% in the prices of gasoline. The lowest figure, in turn, occurred in the metropolitan area of Belém (8.10%), where the biggest negative contributions came from rice (-29.62%) and acai (-9.77%).

In order to estimate the index of the month, the prices collected from November 30 to December 28, 2021 (reference) were compared with the prices in force from October 29 to November 29, 2021 (base). The INPC has been calculated by the IBGE since 1979. It refers to households with monthly income of 1 to 5 minimum wages, with a salaried head of the household. It encompasses ten metropolitan areas in Brazil, besides the municipalities of Goiânia, Campo Grande, Rio Branco, São Luís, Aracaju and Brasília.

INPC closes the year with a rise of 10.16%

In 2021, the INPC closed the year with a rise of 10.16%, above the rate of 5.45% recorded in 2020. Food products changed 7.71%, whereas non-food products changed 10.93%. In 2020, the group of Food and beverages had changed 15.53% and non-food products, 2.60%. The table below shows the results by group of products and services.

Concerning the regional indexes, the highest rate was registered in the metropolitan area of Curitiba (12.84%), especially due to the rises in gasoline (51.78%) and electricity (24.05%). The lowest change occurred in the metropolitan area of Belém (7.75%), whose result was influenced by the retreat in the prices of rice (-29.62%) and acai (-9.77%).