Italy’s inflation slows in August ’24

Italy’s national consumer price index (NIC) increased by 0.2 per cent in August 2024 on a monthly basis and by 1.1 per cent year-on-year, down from 1.3 per cent in July, confirming earlier estimates.

The slowdown was primarily driven by a sharp decline in the prices of non-regulated energy products, which fell by 8.6 per cent, and durable goods, which dropped by 1.8 per cent.

In contrast, regulated energy prices surged by 14.3 per cent, while services related to transport rose by 2.9 per cent. Core inflation, excluding energy and unprocessed food, remained stable at 1.9 per cent.

The inflationary gap between services and goods widened, with services growing at 3.2 per cent annually, while goods saw a decline of 0.5 per cent.

Italy’s harmonised index of consumer prices (HICP) dropped 0.2 per cent on a monthly basis, largely due to summer sales, but grew 1.2 per cent year-on-year.