General Mills Boosts Cereal Prices 2.5%

General Mills Inc., which makes Cheerios, Wheaties and Lucky Charms, confirmed it is raising cereal prices an average 2.5%. The increase will vary among the company’s brands but probably will mean grocers will boost the retail price of Big G cereals by a nickel to a dime a box, analysts said. General Mills, the nation’s second-largest cereal maker, said that while the average retail price of a box of its cereals is about the same as it was in 1993, the average consumer price for food eaten at home during the same period has increased about 3% annually. It was not immediately clear whether the increase would spread throughout the industry. Kellogg Co., the largest cereal maker, raised its prices by an average of 2.7% in December. General Mills stock was up 94 cents a share at $79.19 on the New York Stock Exchange.