The escalation, with double-digit increases in nine countries, including Spain, is putting pressure on the ECB to accelerate rate hikes
More pressure on the European Central Bank (ECB) in its new cycle of rate hikes. Inflation in the 19 countries of the single currency reached a new high in June, rising from 8.1% in May to 8.6%.
The advance data from the Eurostat statistics office, to be confirmed in the coming weeks, indicate the highest price increase in the region in the entire historical series. And it multiplies the monetary organization’s 2% stability target by four.
The CPI in harmonized terms (which the Statistical Office sets to equate the different components of each country’s indicator), puts Spain in the lead with a harmonized figure of 10%, compared to 8.5% in May. But eight other countries are also showing feared double-digit price growth, with Estonia and Lithuania leading the way with increases of 22% and 20.5% respectively.
All countries registered increases compared to May, except in Germany, where data moderated from 8.7% to 8.2% in the first month since measures such as the petrol boost and the reduction in subscription transport; and the Netherlands, which went from 10.2% in May to 9.9% in June.
However, these are still very high numbers that are pushing the eurozone average to unsustainable levels. And the biggest problems are for the countries that, as in the case of Spain, exceed that average. The price difference is without a doubt one of the factors that can most damage the competitiveness of an economy. And the difference in the Spanish case with the average of the region is already 1.4 points.
Information published on Friday shows that price increases in the sixth month of the year mainly influenced energy prices. In particular, according to Eurostat, this indicator recorded an annual increase of 41.9% in July, compared to 39.1% in May. In contrast, the price of fresh food increased by 11.1% year-on-year in June, while it was already 9% in May.
Services became 3.4% more expensive, a tenth less than the month before, while industrial goods prices excluding energy increased by 4.3%, compared to 4.2% in May.
Excluding the impact of energy from the calculation, inflation was 5% in June, compared to 4.6% in the previous month, while also excluding the impact of fresh food prices, alcohol and tobacco prices, core inflation was 3. .7%, one-tenth lower than the May record.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
