The Statistics Institute has announced that the cost of living increased by 2.16% in February.

According to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), prices rose by 2.16% compared to the previous month, 4.21% since last December, and 47.10% compared to the same month last year.

Out of 467 monitored goods and services, the average price of 343 items increased, while 124 items saw a decrease.

Among major expenditure groups, the highest price increase was recorded in the education sector with 6.22%, while the biggest decline was observed in clothing and footwear, dropping by 2.17%.

Top three price increases were seen in newspapers, mobile phone call fees and water bills while the top three price decreases were seen in fresh peas, red cabbage and lettuce.