2018/19 Budget Communication 2018_2019 BUDGET COMMUNICATION | Page 68

Improvements in the labour market were also
broad-based across the country. The unemployment rate in
New Providence fell by 2.3 percentage points to 10.6 per
cent. It declined by 1.3 points to 12.1 per cent in Grand
Bahamas and by 0.5 points to 8.6 per cent in Abaco over the
12-month period.
The rate of retail price inflation rose to 1.5 per
cent in 2017 after having declined by 0.4 per cent the year
before,
largely
reflecting
the
impact
of
increased
international oil prices. The dominant component of the
price index, comprising housing, water, gas, electricity and
other fuels, posted a cost increase of 3.7 per cent during the
year as compared to a 1.1 per cent decline in 2016. In
contrast, the average cost of food and non-alcoholic
beverages continued to decline in 2017, though by a more
modest 0.1 per cent on the heels of a 0.9 per cent contraction
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