The FINANCIAL — The average cost of cooking one standard portion of Imeretian khachapuri increased up to 3.63 GEL in September 2017. This is 5.4% higher m/m (compared to August 2017), and 6% higher y/y (compared to September 2016).
According to official statistics, compared to the same month of the previous year the Consumer Price Index (annual inflation rate) increased by 6.2%, which is very close to our estimate in yearly terms, although monthly inflation (compared to August 2017) amounted to 0.7 %, which is lower than our estimate.
Khachapuri Index basket includes 6 ingredients needed to cook khachapuri (flour, cheese, egg, yeast, butter and milk). In September, prices of all khachapuri ingredients, except egg, increased m/m. The highest increase was captured for cheese, whose price increased by 9.9%. Given that supply of milk decreases gradually as winter starts, one has to expect further increase in cheese prices and khachapuri index respectively.
