ROME (Reuters) – Italian EU-harmonised consumer prices (HICP) fell a preliminary 0.8% month-on-month in July, with annual inflation accelerating to 1.7% from 0.9% in June, data showed on Wednesday.
The 1.7% annual rate was the highest since last October.
The HICP was above the median forecast of a 1.2% year-on-year rise, in a Reuters survey of 17 analysts.
Official statistics agency ISTAT also reported that the main domestic price index (NIC), was up 0.5% on the month and up 1.3% annually in July, following a 0.8% annual rate in June.
The HICP monthly decline was due to the summer sales, not taken into account by NIC index.
Core inflation (net of fresh food and energy) was running at 2.5% year-on-year on the HICP index in July, up from 2.1% the previous month.
ISTAT gave the following preliminary breakdown:
July June May
The EU-harmonised index (HICP):
Monthly change -0.8 0.2 0.2
Year-on-year inflation 1.7 0.9 0.8
Index (base 2015=100) 121.9 122.9 122.7
The NIC index:
Monthly change 0.5 0.1 0.2
Year-on-year inflation 1.3 0.8 0.8
Index (base 2015=100) 121.3 120.7 120.6
ISTAT gave the following sector-by-sector breakdown for the HICP in July:
Sector m/m yr/yr
Food -0.3 1.2
Alcoholic drinks, tobacco 0.0 2.5
Clothing -16.9 4.8
Housing, electricity, fuel 2.8 -2.3
Domestic goods -0.5 0.4
Health spending 0.0 2.1
Transport 0.5 1.6
Communications -0.8 -5.5
Recreation 1.2 2.7
Education 0.0 1.9
Hotels, restaurants 0.5 4.3
Other goods, services -0.3 2.3
(This story has been refiled to fix the formatting of a table)
(Reporting by Antonella Cinelli, editing by Gavin Jones)
