Prices in Spain rose 4.1% in April, according to the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE), which thus confirmed an increase of eight tenths of a point in inflation, which had been 3.3% in March.
This increase in the inflation rate (increase in prices compared to the same month of the previous year) in Spain is mainly due to the rise in fuel prices, which had fallen in April 2022, and electricity, which decreased less than last year. revealed today the INE.
Inflation increased in April, despite a moderation in the increase in food prices compared to the same month of the previous year.
According to the data known today, the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages rose 12.9% in April, some 3.5 points less than in March, due to the decrease in vegetables and a more moderate increase than in 2022. of meat, bread and cereals, olive oil and other fats, milk, cheese and eggs.
Core inflation (which excludes energy and unprocessed fresh food) was 6.6% in April, nine tenths less than in March.
Spain closed last year with the lowest inflation rate in the European Union (5.7%), after having one of the highest values in the first half of 2022 and having registered the highest inflation in the country since 1984 in July (10.77%). .
This is despite record increases in food prices and core inflation that has not been as high in Spain since the 1980s, according to the Spanish INE.
In an attempt to respond to rising food prices, a new set of measures came into force in January, including the suspension of VAT (consumption tax) on some foods and products considered basic.
Throughout 2022, Spain approved several packages of measures to deal with inflation of more than 3% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), around 45,000 million euros, including direct aid to consumers and companies and tax benefits, such as the reduction of VAT on electricity and gasoline to 5% or a discount of 20 cents per liter on the purchase of fuel.
Source: TSF
