SHARE
COPY LINK

ITALY

Italy sees inflation slow down: official data

Inflation in Italy has slowed again to 0.4 percent on a 12-month basis in March, official final data showed on Monday amid growing concern over Europe's deflation risk.

Italy sees inflation slow down: official data
Photo: KenteeGardin/Flickr

That compared with 0.5-percent inflation in February.

The cost of living rose by 0.1 percent from the February level, the Istat data agency said, adding that the slowdown was due to prices decreases for energy and food.

The definitive figures confirmed preliminary ones.

Excluding unprocessed food and energy, core inflation was 0.9 percent – 0.1 points lower than in February.

Economists worry that ultra-low inflation could stall the patchy European economic rebound, stifling investment and demand.

The European Central Bank has bristled over calls for it to take action, after deciding in its monthly meeting to hold monetary policy unchanged.

Italy has the third-biggest economy in the eurozone.

Don't miss a story about Italy – Join us on Facebook and Twitter.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

ECONOMY

Spain’s inflation soars to 29-year high

Spanish inflation accelerated in November to its highest level in nearly three decades on the back of rising food and gas prices, official data showed Monday.

black friday spain
Black Friday sales can't disguise the fact for shoppers that life in Spain is getting increasingly expensive. Photo: GABRIEL BOUYS / AFP

Consumer prices jumped by 5.6 percent, up from a 5.4 percent increase in October, according to preliminary figures from national statistics institute.

That is its fastest pace since September 1992, when the rate was 5.8 percent.

The surge in inflation in the eurozone’s fourth-largest economy was due largely to a spike in food prices, followed by higher gas prices, the statistics office said.

Electricity costs, however, declined slightly after a month-long acceleration, it added.

As in other European Union nations, inflation in Spain has risen since the start of the year after consumer prices declined during most of 2020 due to the economic impact of pandemic lockdowns.

In October, eurozone inflation reached 4.1 percent, well above the European Central Bank’s target of two percent and equal to a high set in July 2008.

But the bank believes eurozone inflation will peak in November and is set to gradually slow next year as supply bottlenecks and the energy crunch ease, board member Isabel Schnabel said earlier this month.

Investors worry central banks will withdraw their stimulus measures sooner than expected to tame inflation.

SHOW COMMENTS