Breaking the Ashes: The Culture of Illicit Liquor in Sri Lanka

Appendix 3. Calculating Inflation in Sri Lanka

Appendix 3 Calculating Inflation in Sri Lanka Rampant inflation in Sri Lanka makes comparing prices from different years difficult. Throughout most of the book, unless otherwise noted, monetary figures have been adjusted for inflation and are stated in 2004 rupees. In these calculations, I have used the Consumers’ Price Index (CPI) (see Appendix Table 3.1). This index measures the prices of consumer items, and suggests the changing purchasing power of wages. To calculate what Rs. 1000 in 1998 would be worth in 2004, divide the CPI number for 2004 (161.9) by the CPI number for 1998 (120.8), and multiply the result (1.34) by Rs. 1,000, to obtain the figure of Rs. 1,340. This means that a consumer would spend Rs. 1,340 in 2004 to buy what he or she could have purchased with Rs. 1,000 in 1998. Occasionally, as noted in the text, I give both nominal values (rupee values informants report) and real values (equivalents in 2004 figures,adjusted for inflation). In these special cases I have done this to show how dramatically inflation has affected the value of the Sri Lankan rupee over the years. In other instances, particularly when quoting informants, I have left nominal values in the text to preserve the flow of the narrative, especially if, for example, modifying a round figure would seem awkward. In cases where exact figures matter to the argument and the interview did not take place in 2004, I mention 2004 values in square brackets in the sentence. To avoid encumbering the text, I have only noted US$ equivalents for particularly salient figures. Between 2004 and 2006, when most of the ethnographic information used in this book was gathered, US$1 was roughly equivalent to Rs. 100 (Institute of Policy Studies 2005, 22), and all dollar equivalents are calculated at that rate. Calculating Inflation in Sri Lanka 245 Appendix Table 3.1. Sri Lanka Consumers’ Price Index Year SLCPI (January) [1992] [68.3] [1993] [77.5] 1995–97 100 1998 120.8 1999 126.8 2000 122.1 2001 134.1 2002 152.4 2003 163.4 2004 161.9 2005 191.0 2006 197.2 Sources: Figures for 1992 and 1993 reflect the Greater Colombo Consumers’ Price Index as reported by the Department of Census and Statistics 2007. All other figures reflect the Sri Lanka Consumer’s Price Index as reported by the Department of Census and Statistics 2006. This page intentionally left blank. ...