Inflation fell three tenths in January in relation to the previous month, but raised its interannual rate by one tenth, up to 5.8%, due to the higher price of fuels, according to advanced data published this Monday by the National Institute of Statistics ( INE), which includes, for the first time, weightings from the National Accounts, as well as the free gas and electricity markets.
With the increase registered in the first month of 2023, inflation breaks with five consecutive months of decreases in its interannual rate and resumes its increases. However, the data for January, which will have to be confirmed by Statistics in the middle of next month, is five points lower than the peak reached last July, when inflation rose to 10.8%, its highest level since September 1984.
According to the INE, the year-on-year CPI rise to 5.8% in January is mainly due to higher fuel prices and the fact that clothing and footwear prices have fallen less at the start of this year than they did in January 2022. On the other hand, Statistics highlights that electricity prices fell more in January 2023 than last year. The Ministry of Economic Affairs has highlighted in a statement that inflation stabilized in January at its lowest level since November 2021 and that it only rose one tenth despite the withdrawal of the general fuel bonus.
Underlying
The INE includes an estimate of core inflation in the CPI data preview (excluding unprocessed food and energy products), which rose five tenths in January, to 7.5%, standing 1.7 points above the general CPI . The Department headed by Nadia Calviño expects the core to reach its maximum in the first quarter of this year and follow the downward path of general inflation.
In monthly terms (January 2023 compared to December 2022), the CPI registered a decrease of three tenths, compared to the increase of 0.2% of the previous month and the decrease of 0.4% experienced a year earlier. In the first month of 2023, the Harmonized Consumer Price Index (IPCA) placed its interannual rate at 5.8%, three tenths above that registered in the previous month. For its part, the estimated monthly variation of the IPCA was -0.5%. The INE will publish the final CPI data for January on February 15.
