Translated by Milo Dvorak
20. 5. 2024
Business Newsletter #35
Good morning,
It appears that the recent rampant inflation is over, but one shouldn't forget inflation in itself is still very real. And if you're like me and like to understand stuff a bit better, I've also included a link to a short YouTube explainer video, elaborating on the government two-percent inflation target.
Published by e15.cz on 17 May 2024
Consumer prices in the European Union increased by 2.6 percent year-on-year in April, maintaining the same inflation growth rate as in March. The Czech Republic ranked among the countries with higher inflation rates in the EU comparison, with domestic inflation rising from 2.2 percent to 3.1 percent, according to Eurostat.
In April, Lithuania (0.4 percent), Denmark (0.5 percent) and Finland (0.6 percent) had the lowest inflation rates in the EU respectively. Conversely, consumer prices increased the most in Romania (6.2 percent), Belgium (4.9 percent), and Croatia (4.7 percent). The Czech Republic ranked nineteenth, making it the ninth worst in the comparison. It had been in the top ten since January this year.
Eurostat's calculation method differs from that of the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ), which reported that Czech inflation had reached 2.9 percent in April. However, both measurements confirm the upward trend. According to Czech statistics, inflation was mainly driven by the prices of food, alcohol as well as fuels.
Among food items, most tracked categories saw a reduction in the year-on-year decline in April. Flour prices were over 19 percent lower, meat by nearly four percent, semi-skimmed long-life milk by 11.4 percent and eggs by 15.5 percent. Conversely, vegetable prices increased by 2.4 percent whereas chocolate by more than nine percent. Non-alcoholic beverage prices accelerated their year-on-year growth to 5.4 percent.
In the eurozone, the inflation rate also remained the same as in March at 2.4 percent, not far from the European Central Bank's two-percent target. Since October last year, the ECB has kept the key interest rate stable at 4.5 percent. The increase in eurozone inflation was largely driven by the rising costs of services, food, alcohol and tobacco products alike.