The Central Bank of The Bahamas revealed that gasoline prices experienced a 14.6 percent hike during the first quarter of this year when compared to the same period last year.
In its Quarterly Economic Review (QER) report for March, the regulator said domestic energy prices went up during the period as a result of heightened international oil prices.
"Specifically, the average prices of both diesel and gasoline rose by 6.4 percent and 6.3 percent to $3.84 and $4.23 per gallon during the three-month period, and in comparison to the same period of 2016, prices firmed by 15.7 percent and 14.6 percent, respectively," the report states.
The regulator also provided data on domestic consumer prices on daily services and goods, such as clothing, recreation and hospitality for the first nine months of the previous fiscal year.
The Central Bank showed that domestic consumer price inflation, which is measured by the changes in the Retail Price Index for The Bahamas, increased to 2.2 percent by the end of March 2017.
In terms of domestic inflation for the first 12 months to March, there was a decline to 0.5 percent from 1.1 percent in the comparative 2016 period.
The report states that
average cost increases "decelerated sharply" for health by 13.1 percentage points.
Alcohol beverages, tobacco and narcotics also experienced a decrease by 6.4 percentage points to 1.5 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively.
"Inflation rates also slowed for clothing and footwear and furnishing, and household equipment and routine household maintenance, by 3.0 and 2.7 percentage points, to 0.8 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively," the report states.
The report also shows that average prices declined for recreation and culture, restaurant and hotels, and food and non-alcoholic beverages, by 0.8 percent, 2.1 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively.
"In contrast, average costs for housing, water, gas electricity and other fuels firmed by 0.9 percent, compared to the year earlier contraction of 2.6 percent, while the decline in transportation costs slowed by 4.8 percentage points to 0.7 percent," the report notes.

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