Consumer Price Index Monthly
Consumer Price Index, February 2023
This monthly release of the The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Canada, the provinces, Whitehorse and Yellowknife, provides a descriptive summary of retail price movements, inflation rates and the factors underlying them.
PEI and Canada Consumer Price Index
All-Items Consumer Price Index by Province
| CAN | NL | PE | NS | NB | QC | ON | MB | SK | AB | BC | |
| Feb-23 | 154.5 | 157.4 | 161.4 | 158.4 | 155.6 | 150.6 | 156.4 | 156.9 | 157.6 | 160.1 | 149.1 |
| Jan-23 | 153.9 | 155.9 | 160.1 | 157.3 | 154.9 | 149.9 | 155.7 | 156.2 | 156.7 | 160.5 | 148.1 |
| Feb-22 | 146.8 | 149.3 | 151.2 | 148.8 | 147.0 | 142.6 | 148.8 | 147.4 | 149.1 | 154.5 | 140.4 |
| Year Over year Change (%) | 5.2% | 5.4% | 6.7% | 6.5% | 5.9% | 5.6% | 5.1% | 6.4% | 5.7% | 3.6% | 6.2% |
| Monthly Change (%) | 0.4% | 1.0% | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.6% | -0.2% | 0.7% |
Summary
Statistics Canada reported that the year-over-year change in the All-Items Consumer Price Index (CPI) for P.E.I. was 6.7 per cent in February 2023. This was the highest year-over-year increase among provinces, however prices increased at a slower pace than the 7.0 per cent increase seen in January. Year-over-year prices rose at a slower pace in February than in January in all provinces. The change to the All-items index for P.E.I. as compared to January 2023 was 0.8 per cent. This compares to 5.2 per cent year-over-year and 0.4 per cent monthly changes for Canada.
Leading contributors to year-over-year price increases for P.E.I. were fuel oil and other fuels (35.5%), followed by purchase and leasing of passenger vehicles (6.3%), rent (7.4%), food purchased from restaurants (8.8%), and passenger vehicle parts, maintenance and repairs (11.6%). These increases were partially offset by year-over-year declines for child care and housekeeping services (-39.5%), internet access services (-11.2%), home entertainment equipment, parts and services (-11.4%), video and audio subscription services (-4.1%), and fresh or frozen beef (-5.6%).
The monthly change in the All-Items CPI for PEI in February 2023 was 0.8 per cent. Higher prices for fuel oil and other fuels (6.5%), traveler accommodation (16.1%), rent (2.3%), telephone services (6.4%), and financial services (4.0%), were partially offset by lower prices for internet access services (-14.1%), fresh or frozen chicken (-9.2%), fresh or frozen pork (-18.9%), child care and housekeeping services (-7.6%), and inter-city transportation (-4.6%).
Prices increased year-over-year in all of the 8 major CPI components, led by 10.1 per cent increase in food prices and a 9.7 per cent increase in shelter costs. Food purchased from stores increased 10.6 per cent year-over-year in February, a faster pace than the 10.3 per cent increase in January. Food purchased from restaurants was up 8.8 per cent year-over-year in February. Energy1 costs increased by 12.5 per cent year-over-year, down from a 15.4 per cent increase in January.
February 2023 Prince Edward Island CPI Eight Major Components and Energy
| Prince Edward Island CPI Major Components | |||||||||
| Food | Household operations, furnishings & equipment | Shelter | Clothing & Footwear | Transportation | Health & Personal Care | Recreation, Education, & Reading | Alcohol, Tobacco, & Cannibis | Energy | |
| Feb-23 | 190.0 | 140.4 | 176.1 | 100.8 | 169.3 | 145.7 | 125.6 | 221.3 | 260.1 |
| Jan-23 | 188.6 | 139.9 | 173.5 | 98.6 | 169.2 | 145.0 | 123.4 | 220.7 | 255.2 |
| Feb-22 | 172.6 | 135.1 | 160.5 | 96.3 | 160.2 | 135.8 | 122.9 | 211.2 | 231.3 |
| Year Over year Change (%) | 10.1% | 3.9% | 9.7% | 4.7% | 5.7% | 7.3% | 2.2% | 4.8% | 12.5% |
| Monthly Change (%) | 0.7% | 0.4% | 1.5% | 2.2% | 0.1% | 0.5% | 1.8% | 0.3% | 1.9% |
Excluding energy, PEI’s CPI increased 6.0 per cent year-over-year, fourth highest among provinces. The year-over-year increase in the All-items excluding energy index for Canada was 5.7 per cent.
February 2023 CPI All-Items and All-Items Excluding Energy, Year-over-Year Change, Canada and Provinces
Nationally, the All-Items CPI rose 5.2 per cent on a year-over-year basis in February, down from a 5.9 per cent increase in January. This was the largest deceleration in the headline CPI since April 2020, largely due to base-year affect, which is attributable to a steep monthly increase in prices in February 2022. This is the seventh consecutive month in which headline inflation has not accelerated. Year-over-year prices rose at a faster pace in February as compared to January in only three of the eight major components (Household operations, furnishings and equipment, Clothing and footwear, and Alcohol, tobacco and cannabis). While inflation has slowed in recent months, having increased 1.2 per cent compared with 6 months ago, prices remain elevated. Compared with 18 months ago, for example, inflation has increased 8.3 per cent.
The cost of food purchased from stores rose 10.6 per cent in February, down from 11.4 per cent in January, marking the seventh consecutive month of double-digit increases. Price growth for some items slowed, such as non-alcoholic beverages, meat, vegetables and vegetable preparations, bakery products, and dairy products.
Consumers paid 1.0 per cent less at the pump in February compared with January, largely due to higher crude oil inventory levels within the United States. On a year-over-year basis, prices for gasoline fell 4.7 per cent in February. Excluding gasoline, the CPI rose 5.7 per cent year-over-year in February, down from 5.9 per cent in January.
On a monthly basis nationally, the All-Items CPI rose 0.4 per cent in February, following a 0.5 per cent increase in January.
For more information on the February 2023 CPI, as well as links to data tables, please refer to Statistics Canada’s release for the Consumer Price Index, February 2023.
Related downloads for this release:
Monthly Consumer Price Index Report PDF (87KB)
1 The special aggregate "energy" includes: "electricity", "natural gas", "fuel oil and other fuels", "gasoline", and "fuel, parts and accessories for recreational vehicles".
Visit the Consumer Price Index Portal to find all CPI data, publications, interactive tools, and announcements highlighting new products and upcoming changes to the CPI in one convenient location.
The CPI for March 2023 will be released on April 18, 2023.
Source: Statistics Canada.
Table 18-10-0004-01, Consumer Price Index, monthly, not seasonally adjusted