BRIEFS. business

Cost of Basic Food BAsket hits new high

With an increase of 3.2 percent in November, the basic food basket saw its highest monthly increase in five years, according to the Ministerio de Economía y Finanzas (Mef).

The cost of basic goods has increased throughout the entire year, except during the month of October, when it decreased by 0.2 percent.

The 3.2 percent increase brings the cost of the 51 "basic items" in the basket to $235.03 a month, an increase of 13.6 percent over 2006.

Vegetable prices alone rose 20.7 percent. The price of all other food groups went up, too, except for fruit, which fell 1.4 percent.