Annual inflation in Germany fell to 3.8% in October, the lowest since August 2021, also 3.8%, and compared to 4.5% in September, according to final data published this Wednesday by the statistics agency. German (Destatis).
“However, the inflation rate remains high in the medium and long term. In particular, the increase in food and energy prices during the prolonged period of war and crisis remains noticeable to consumers,” said Ruth Brand , president of Destatis.
Ruth Brand added that price growth is slowing and that “year-on-year food inflation has continued to moderate and most energy products have even become cheaper within a year.”
Energy prices fell 3.2% year-on-year in October, which had a moderating effect on the inflation rate, after a further 1% increase in September.
Energy prices had last declined year-on-year in January 2021, when they fell 2%.
The decisive factor for the significant drop in prices was the base effect resulting from the very high level of energy prices a year ago, due to the war and the crisis.
Fuels, for example, registered a year-on-year decline of 7.7% in October.
Energy prices for domestic use remained practically unchanged, with an increase of 0.1%.
Heating oil, up 28.2%, and natural gas, up 13%, were noticeably cheaper, while electricity remained more expensive, up 4.7% from last year.
Food products increased 6.1% year-on-year, after 7.5% in September and 9% in August.
The last time food prices rose more weakly was in February 2022, when they rose 5.4% year-on-year.
Core inflation, which does not take into account the impact of food and energy, stood at 4.3% in October, compared to 4.6% in September, and therefore above global inflation.
Excluding the impact of energy, the inflation rate was 4.5%.
Global goods prices increased by 3.6% year-on-year, with an increase of 3.5% for consumer goods and 3.8% for consumer durables.
Prices for all services increased by 3.9% year-on-year, practically unchanged compared to the 4% recorded in September.
Germany’s harmonized CPI, which is calculated according to EU criteria, stood at 3% year-on-year in October, while it registered a decrease of 0.2% compared to the previous month.
Source: TSF
