The euro zone’s interannual inflation rate fell by two-tenths in July compared to the previous month, reaching 5.3%, marking the lowest price increase since January 2022, according to Eurostat’s second estimate. However, the underlying rate remains at 5.5%.
In the entire European Union (EU), the annual inflation rate was 6.1%, three tenths below the June value. This is the smallest price increase since January 2022.
The slowdown in price increases in the euro zone in July was mainly due to the 6.1% fall in energy costs, compared to the 5.6% fall in June, while the increase in fresh food costs was 9.2%. two tenths higher than the previous month.
Prices for services also rose by 5.6% year-on-year, two tenths more than in May, while non-energy industrial goods rose by 5%, five tenths cheaper than in the previous month.
By excluding the impact of energy from the calculation, July’s year-on-year inflation rate was 6.7%, compared to 6.9% the previous month, while also excluding the impact of underlying food prices, alcohol and tobacco. The inflation rate remained stable at 5.5%.
Of the 27 countries, the lowest annual inflation rates were recorded in Belgium (1.7%), Luxembourg (2%) and Spain (2.1%), while the highest price increases were in Hungary (17.5%), Slovakia and others Countries recorded were Poland (both with 10.3%).
The recovery in Spain’s harmonized inflation rate to 2.1% in July narrowed the favorable price differential compared to the euro zone average to 3.2 percentage points from 3.9 the previous month.
