Wellington, May 1 (IANS): Food and housing costs were the main drivers of inflation for all household groups in New Zealand, according to figures released by the statistics department Stats NZ on Monday.

The cost of living for the average household increased by 7.7 per cent in the 12 months to March 2023, which follows an 8.2 per cent increase in the 12 months to December 2022, Xinhua news agency quoted Stats NZ as saying.

"Food prices increased by 12 per cent for the average household, which was the main contributor for most household groups," Stats NZ consumer prices manager James Mitchell said.

Higher prices for interest payments, grocery food, rent, and fruit and vegetables were the main contributors to this increase, he said.

Each quarter, the household living-costs price indexes measure how inflation affects 13 different household groups in New Zealand, whereas the consumer price index measures how inflation affects New Zealand as a whole, Mitchell said.