The PPI dropped in December. CPI didn't....and as reported by Reuters this afternoon, the headline Lima+Metropolitan district Consumer Price Index (CPI) finished at 6.65% for 2008, a country mile away from the Central Bank's 1% to 3% inflation target, a whole street away from FinMin Luismi's BS of just a couple of months ago and all this doesn't even include the basic facts that
a) this figure for Lima+Metro is not at all representative of the country as a whole because Lima has one of the lowest inflation rates in all Peru
b) the stats are crooked against reporting reality anyhow.
2008 was the year when food prices shot up and stayed high, allowing everyone except the end user to cash in. This was the year that finished seeing Peruvians end up paying double that of US citizens for a gallon of fuel. This was the year that chicken moved from S/5 per kilo to S/8 per kilo, and rice from S/1.80 per kilo to S/3.20 per kilo but has a gov't that insisted all was well because gas prices fell by 1.5%, beer got cheaper and you could get yourself an iPhone on a plan. It's a great time to be rich in Twobreakfasts' free market paradise, but it truly sucks for the vast majority.
The only two stats that really matter about Peru:
Percentage of population that lives on U$2 or less per day: 40%
Approval rating of its President: 20%
Approval rating of its President: 20%
The rest is noise.