Prices in the first quarter of this year were down 10.4 percent on the same period in 2010, continuing a downward trend that began in 2008, Istat reported.
The agency said that prices in the first quarter of this year were down 0.7 percent compared to the previous quarter, and were 4.6 percent lower than the same period of 2013.
Codacons, the consumer association, blamed the lack of purchasing power among Italians for the drop in prices, as a result of the crisis and a shortage of credit.
Meanwhile, rents in Italy have also soared while wages stagnated, with tenants spending the bulk of their monthly salary on rent, according to a report earlier this year.
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