Italy: Harmonized inflation comes in at highest level since October 2023 in January
Harmonized inflation came in at 1.0% in January, up from December’s 0.6%. January’s figure marked the highest inflation rate since October 2023. The figure was primarily driven by a more moderate increase in prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages. In addition, price pressures for transportation moderated. Moreover, prices for recreation grew at a more subdued pace.
Annual average harmonized inflation fell to 5.1% in January (December: 5.9%). Meanwhile, consumer price inflation ticked up to 0.8% in January, from the previous month’s 0.6%.
Lastly, harmonized consumer prices dropped 1.03% in January over the previous month, contrasting the 0.14% increase logged in December. January’s result marked the weakest reading since July 2023.
Commenting on the outlook for inflation, ING’s Paolo Pizzoli stated:
“The inflation profile will be crucially dominated by the evolution of energy goods and the phasing out of their favourable base effects. For the time being, notwithstanding increased transport costs linked to the Red Sea/Suez Canal developments, manufacturers have not signalled increasing intentions to raise prices. Should the disruption persist, however, some pass-through cannot be ruled out in the most exposed sectors.”