BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Prices rose nearly 3 percent in Palestine over the past year, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics said Monday.

The consumer price index increased 2.78 percent overall -- 4.08 percent in the West Bank, 3.23 percent in East Jerusalem, and 0.48 percent in the Gaza Strip.

The biggest price rise was for vegetables, at 15.03 percent, followed by fresh poultry, at 8.91 percent. Fruit prices rose below average, at 2.17 percent.

The cost of transportation fuel rose 5.81 percent, and fuel for electricity by 3.67 percent, PCBS said.