Spanish inflation picks up as fuel prices rise — RT Business News
Inflation in Spain jumped in January after six months of slowing price growth, according to data released Monday by the National Statistics Institute (INE). Rising fuel prices were the culprit behind the higher reading.
Consumer prices climbed 5.8% from the same month a year ago, up from the 5.5% rise the previous month, and well above market consensus forecasts by 4.9%.
The INE said the price increases came after the government ended its block subsidy on all fuels, while prices for clothing and footwear did not fall as rapidly as in January 2022, the month when retailers usually start offering discounts in Spain.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile fresh food and energy prices, continued to rise sharply, reaching 7.5% in January, from 7.0% the previous month, data showed. ‘INE. This is seen as an indication that the underlying price pressures in the economy are still very high.
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“This is bad data” Raymon Torres, chief economist at think tank Funcas, said, while arguing that the sharp rise in core inflation is also due to higher processed food prices.
The country’s harmonized EU 12-month inflation came in at 5.8%, down from 5.5% in December and above analysts’ expectations of 4.7%.
Stubborn inflation in Spain weighed on households and businesses, dampening economic growth.
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