Saturday, February 19, 2011

Inflation - 6 (19 Feb)


Washington apples have gone up to Rs.150; on par with our Shimla apples. Fuji still holds at Rs.130
Brinjal rate remains the same, but almost the entire tray seemed to be infected by pests - I'm not from an agriculture background, but the holes and brown scars on all of them seemed to be signs that something was wrong.

Beans was in plenty; price has crashed. So I guess inflation might probably drop down - maybe the stock markets will get a boost but they have the problem of corruption and scams to digest! Bitter gourd doesn't seem to be in stock - price gone up to Rs.35/kg.

I have reduced the weightage for chillies and small onions since we don't use them in equal quantities compared to other vegetables.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Inflation - 5 (12th Feb)

(click on the image to see it full size)

I just realized I missed bitter gourd - that costs Rs.22/kg. Will keep a watch on that - not sure if I find it in the store regularly.

It was amusing to see a couple of people trying to pick vegetables in exact amounts - one lady was looking for a perfect 1kg tomato and a guy was try to pick something for an exact 100grams; there was an unmanned weighing machine that customers could use.

The ladies finger today seemed to have some sort of damage - most of them had black holes; in fact 2 out of the 3 trays were filled with them. Rates have gone down a little but the veggies didn't seem that fresh. Shimla apples continue to be at 150 while Washington apples have gone up to 140; Fuji still stays at 130. Indian black seedless grapes are Rs.100 per kg and they were very sweet today.

Guys on bike, with pretty girls sitting behind don't seem to care about traffic signs or rules - they just criss cross without looking at anything and without helmets. One slight bump by a car and their lives could change drastically - but they hardly seem to be worried about it; risk their lives and their partner's life as well.

I've added the food inflation that is declared every week - this reflects the inflation 2 weeks back. So the inflation figure released in the 3rd week of Jan is actually inflation rate at the 1st week of Jan.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Inflation - 4 (Feb 5)

(you can click on the image to view it in a larger format)


Nothing major this week - just a few major changes; peas, bottle gourd, small onions and brinjal. Lot of kids in the veggie shop along with their dads! Yes - more dads with kids compared to moms - times are changing :-)

I heard that the rates in the central market (which is quite a long drive from the heart of the city) have fallen heavily. But the effect hasn't yet reflected in the veggie shops in the main part of the city. Same was the case of onions - it took a week for the price to dip here. An example of 'price stickiness' perhaps - it is easier for a shop to raise prices, but lowering prices doesn't happen that easily.

Imported apple still stays the same 130. Funny thing is that Shimla apples are 150 but apples coming from far away lands cost 130 - yeah; some would argue that Washington apples have that wax to make them shiny and so it is not good to buy them. And to counter that argument Washington apples have put up notices saying that the wax they use is just a tiny amount and it is approved by some agency and all. But there are Fuji apples which are not waxed that also cost 130 - so imported apples still seem better than domestic ones, price wise.

And just a note - none of the veggies listed above are prepacked veggies; prepacked veggies sometimes cost more.

I've got figure out a way of creating a nice index based on this - for now i've just put an average cost taking into account all the vegetables listed.