Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The results of regular observations of the Central Bank of Uzbekistan show that in July 2018, a 0.5% increase in prices was observed for the selected group of consumer goods and services, mainly due to correction of prices for fruit and vegetable products.

In July, prices for fruits and vegetables stopped the sharp decline that was observed in recent months due to the seasonal increase in their supply, and now they are characterized by a traditional adjustment. In particular, the increase in prices for this group was 5.1%. The increase in prices is due to the effect of a low base, which resulted from a strong reduction in the price of fruit and vegetable products in May and June of this year.

If in June the contribution of fruits and vegetables to the general price dynamics was -3.3 percentage points, in July their contribution became positive and amounted to 0.5 percentage points. Thus, without taking into account fruit and vegetable products, which is the most volatile component of the observed group of goods and services, the July prices in the aggregate did not change compared to the previous month.

In the period under review, there was a moderate rise in prices for meat and dairy products. Beef rose in price by 1.2%, lamb - by 0.1% and milk - by 2.2%. At the same time, chicken meat, on the contrary, fell by 1%.

Compared with previous years, prices for watermelons and melons are at a relatively high level. Natural factors and reduction of crop areas were the main reasons for their rise in price. According to operational data, the average price of watermelon varies between 800-1 800 soums / kg, and melons - 1 800-3 200 soums / kg.

At the same time, eggs fell significantly (by 12.3%), which is due to their high seasonal supply and the weakened sales in foreign markets.

According to the non-food group of goods, the prices for personal hygiene products continued to decline. For example, shampoo and toothpaste fell by 4.5% and 0.6%, respectively. Strengthening the exchange rate of sum and liberalization of foreign trade have become the main factors of this trend.

From 1 July 2018, quantitative restrictions on the duty-free importation of consumer goods from neighboring countries by physical persons entered into force. The introduction of new norms affected the dynamics of prices for household appliances. In particular, irons went up by 3.1%, electric kettles - by 2.4%, vacuum cleaners - by 1.1%.