In June 2018, FRUIT prices continued their recent declining trend — the m/m change last month was equal to negative 8.0% (the largest drop since May 2017). Consequentially, the y/y change in FRUIT prices also shrunk to +4.7%, after minor increase in May 2018.

On the product level, all fruits but citrus and grapes became cheaper in June 2018. Cherry prices were almost halved compared to the prior month, while peach and nectarine prices lost roughly 40% of their May values. The latter is not surprising, taking into account that it is high season for these stone fruits, and peaches are a perishable product, forcing farmers to supply their harvest to the national and international market (in June 2018, Georgia’s peach and nectarine exports exceeded 1.3 million USD, according to the Ministry of Finance of Georgia) in large amounts in a short period of time.

On the year-to-year scale, again, citrus fruits were the biggest price gainers. In June 2018, lemon prices were 48% higher than in the corresponding month of the prior year, while mandarin prices were up by 41%. This is due to the fact that last year, lemon production in the country dropped by 1600 tons (from 3.0 thousand tons in 2016 to 1.4 thousand tons in 2017: GeoStat), while mandarin production was reduced by 5100 tons (from 60.0 thousand tons in 2016 to 54.9 thousand tons in 2017: GeoStat). In 2017, apple production also shrunk significantly in Georgia, but the effect of this change had a smaller impact on corresponding prices — domestically produced apples were selling at a 17% higher price in June 2018 than in June 2017.

For the details of FRUIT price dynamics, see the graph.