For those fed-up with news of incessant price increases, here's some cheer: Tomatoes, kangkong and spinach are cheaper, dropping by 11 to 13 per cent from March, according to the consumer price index (CPI) for April.

Price drops have been even bigger at some wet markets. A check showed that tomatoes are going for $1.80 a kg, down from $2.50 in March. Spinach and kangkong went down from $2.50 per kg to $2 - and are still dropping.

Vegetable importers say this is due to two reasons: Diversification of sources and the short crop cycle.

Said Mr Tay Khiam Back, chairman of the Singapore Fruits and Vegetables Importers and Exporters Association: 'Vegetables grow fast, making supply flexible. All it takes is a month for supplies to meet a surge in demand.'

Another reason for the lower vegetable prices: Importers have been casting their nets far and wide for new sources.

This brings prices down, Mr Tay explained, because importers can easily switch to another supplier if the goods are stemmed.

Singapore imports vegetables from over 30 countries, including China and Malaysia.

Other food retailers are also looking to non-traditional producers in a bid to keep costs down. They have explored importing pork from South Africa, fish from Namibia and eggs from the United States.

The CPI, released by the Department of Statistics last Friday , showed that overall, the prices of vegetables fell by 0.8 per cent in April.

There are other dips: The seafood index slid by 0.5 per cent, due to cheaper fresh fish and prawns. Fishmongers say that grass carp and Sultan fish are among those costing less.

The meat and poultry index fell by 0.2 per cent as the price of fresh poultry and pork dropped.

But the price decline was offset by more expensive cooked food, rice and other cereals, milk products and cooking oil.

Prices of cooked food moved up by 0.9 per cent because of more expensive hawker and restaurant food, and the index for rice and other cereals went up by 2.4 per cent due to higher prices of rice, bread and noodles.

The index for cooking oils rose 5.2 per cent. That for dairy products and eggs rose by 1.4 per cent.

The result: Food prices as a whole increased by 0.8 in April over March.

'It is a function of supply,' explained economist Jimmy Koh. 'Which means that in times of inflation, some foods can still decrease in price.'

Mr Koh, United Overseas Bank's head of economics and treasury research, also pointed out that the products which dropped in prices were not items traded on the global market.

'This means that speculation is not driving prices up for these items either,' he added.

But he warned that high crude oil prices are likely to keep food prices buoyant.

limjess@sph.com.sg