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Consumer prices

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With the indices of January 2018, Istat introduces the use of scanner data in the estimate of inflation, with reference to grocery products (processed food, products for house maintenance and personal care) sold in hypermarkets and supermarkets. In 2018, as required by Regulation (EC) no. 1921 (19/10/2001), the estimate of the impact of this new data source on the annual rate of change of the harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) will be made available on a monthly basis, when the final data are released.

In January 2018, the Italian consumer price index for the whole nation (NIC) increased by 0.3% on monthly basis and by 0.9% compared with January 2017 (it was +0.9% in December 2017). The flash estimate was 0.8%.

In January the stability of the growth on annual basis of All items index was due to the balancing of upward and downward effects. In particular, the main downward contributions came from prices of Unprocessed food (+0.4% down from +2.4% in December), of Non-regulated energy products (+2.5% down from +4.4%) and of Services related to transport (+1.3% down from +2.8%). At the opposite, the main upward effects came from prices of Processed food (+2.1% up from +0.8% in the previous month) and of Regulated energy products (+6.4%, up from +3.7%).

In January, both core inflation and inflation excluding energy were +0.6% (the first 0.2 percentage points higher than in December and the second stable with respect to the previous month).
The increase of All-items index was mainly due to the prices of Energy products, both Regulated (+4.2%) and Non-regulated (+1.1%), and of Processed food including alcohol (+1.3%), partially offset by the decrease in prices of Services related to transport (-3.1%).

The annual rate of change of prices of Goods was +1.3% (+1.1% in December 2017) and that one of prices of Services was +0.6% (the same value registered the previous month). As a consequence, the inflationary gap between Services and Goods was negative and equal to -0.7 percentage points.

Prices of Grocery and unprocessed food increased by 1.0% on monthly basis and by 1.2% on annual basis (down from +1.3% in the previous month).

In January 2018, Italian harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) decreased by 1.5% compared with the previous month and increased by +1.2% with respect to January 2017 (it was +1.0% in December). The large decrease on monthly basis was mainly due to the winter sales of Clothing and footwear (-21.0% compared with December 2017), which are not taken into account in the national index NIC. The flash estimate was +1.1%.

Core inflation, measured by Italian HICP, was +0.8% (up from 0.5% in December). Also inflation excluding energy, food, alcohol and tobacco (+0.7%) and inflation excluding Energy (+0.8%) sped up with respect to the previous month (respectively 0.2 and 0.1 percentage points higher than in December).
In January 2018, the Italian harmonized index of consumer prices at constant tax (HICP-CT) decreased by 1.5% compared with the previous month and increased by 1.1% with respect to January 2017. Therefore, the difference between HICP and HICP-CT growth rates – which incorporates the effects of changes in indirect taxes occurred in the last twelve months – was positive and equal to 0.1 percentage points.

Periodo di riferimento: January 2018

Data di pubblicazione: 22 febbraio 2018

Prossima diffusione: 28 February 2018

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