The FINANCIAL — In January, the cost of cooking one standard Imeretian khachapuri continued to increase, ranging from 3.56 GEL (Batumi and Tbilisi) to 3.92 GEL (Kutaisi), with the average cost being 3.67 GEL.
The new average price is 1.9% higher than the price in January 2016. As for month-to-month development, the price of khachapuri is 1.3% higher compared to the previous month (December 2016).
However, for foreign currency earners, the Khachapuri Index became cheaper because of GEL depreciation (m/m and y/y) relative to USD and EUR during the most recent months. In January 2017, the GEL/USD exchange rate reached 2.7, which is 0.26 points higher compared to the prior year (January 2016), and 0.045 points higher than last month (December 2016.) For foreign currency earners, this effect is somewhat balanced with the shortage of milk supply in winter, which pushes the index up.
The Khachapuri Index lost its value in terms of USD: it lost 0.6% m/m and 8.1% y/y. The situation is roughly similar when looking at the Euro price of khachapuri. The price of khachapuri, expressed in Euro, is down by 1.2% m/m, and 6% y/y.
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