The standard shopping basket of goods and services was 2.6 per cent more expensive in October than a year earlier, the latest Government statistics have revealed.

The average cost of items on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.3 per cent from September to October.

And the inflation rate went up by 0.2 per cent over the same period.

The CPI report said that the basket which cost $100 in 2006 now costs $126.

The health and personal care sector remained the biggest contributor to the increase in the cost of living over the year, with the increase in October at 7.4 per cent compared to the same period of 2013.

The cost of transport and vehicles also had a strong impact on the annual inflation rate, up by 4.9 per cent, while the cost of food rose by 3.5 per cent.

Between September and October, the cost of health and personal care went up by 1.7 per cent.

The average cost for a visit to a dentist went up by 12 per cent, while a trip to a doctor’s surgery went up 19.5 per cent.

The cost of transport and vehicles went up by one per cent over the same period and foreign travel and overseas hotel accommodation increased by eight per cent and 1.6 per cent respectively.

But the cost of fuel — driven down by a worldwide slump in oil prices — fell by 3.7 per cent, while the fuel and power sector together decreased by 2.6 per cent in October.

Domestic power consumers paid an average of 2.7 per cent less in October due to a 7.9 per cent decrease in the fuel adjustment rate — which followed seven monthly increases.

Food prices increased by 0.1 per cent in October compared to the previous month, with the cost of pineapples, frozen turkey and fresh local yams driving much of the hike.

Clothing and footwear rose by 0.5 per cent over the same period, with the cost of children’s clothing going up 2.9 per cent.

And a 0.1 per cent jump in the cost of wine in October led to an overall rise of 0.1 per cent in the tobacco and liquor sector.

The rent sector remained unchanged between September and October, but household goods, services and communications rose by 0.1 per cent, with the cost of bedroom furniture going up 1.4 per cent.