Austria: Harmonized inflation falls to over two-year low in April
Harmonized inflation eased to 3.4% in April, following March’s 4.1%. April’s reading represented the weakest inflation rate since September 2021 but was still among the highest in the Euro area. The reading was driven by moderating price pressures for food and non-alcoholic beverages, and housing and utilities. Moreover, prices for recreation grew at a more subdued pace.
As a result, the trend pointed down, with annual average harmonized inflation falling to 5.6% in April (March: 6.1%). Meanwhile, consumer price inflation fell to 3.5% in April from the previous month’s 4.1%.
Lastly, harmonized consumer prices rose 0.16% in April over the previous month, a smaller increase than March’s 0.65% increase. April’s result marked the softest rise in prices since January.
EIU analysts commented:
“[Harmonized] consumer price inflation will continue to ease in the coming months but will remain historically high. Weaker imported price pressures should continue to support a slowdown in inflation, with producer prices falling by 10.1% year on year (EU harmonised measure) in the first quarter of this year. Falling global commodity prices should also contribute to a continued decline, with gas prices being the main driver of the deceleration in headline inflation in April. However, although we expect global commodity prices to continue to fall, there is a degree of uncertainty related to a volatile geopolitical backdrop.”