Cyprus posts first annual deflation since 1964
Nicosia (AFP) - Cyprus registered its first negative annual inflation for 49 years in 2013, official data showed on Friday, as demand nosedived on the recession-hit island.
The inflation rate for December 2013 decreased by 2.3 percent compared with a 2.1 percent fall in November and 1.1 percent increase in December 2012, said the Cyprus Statistical Service.
"It is worth noting that 2013 is the first year since 1964 that a negative annual rate of inflation is recorded," the service said in a statement.
"This is mainly due to decreases in the prices of electricity, air fares, potatoes and certain clothing items."
It said increases were recorded in the prices of certain fresh vegetables.
Cyprus is suffering an unprecedented recession and record unemployment after a signing in March a 10-billion-euro (then $13 billion) rescue deal with a "troika" of international lenders.
A delegation from the International Monetary Fund, the European Commission and the European Central Bank is expected to visit Cyprus in late January to conduct a third assessment of the Mediterranean island's economy and banking system.
