Italy Inflation Stays Steady As Estimated, Trade Surplus Grows

(RTTNews) - Consumer price inflation in Italy held steady as initially estimated at the end of the year, the latest data from the statistical office showed on Thursday.

Separate official data showed that foreign trade surplus increased slightly in November from last year as imports fell faster than exports.

Consumer price inflation stood at 1.3 percent in December, the same as in November.  That was in line with the flash data published on January 7.

Prices for unprocessed food products rose at a faster pace of 3.8 percent annually in December versus a 2.3 percent increase a month ago. On the other hand, costs for services related to recreation, including repair and personal care, eased to 3.1 percent from 3.7 percent.

Data showed that the annual price growth in regulated energy goods accelerated to 12.7 percent from 7.4 percent. The decline in non-regulated energy products softened to 4.2 percent from 6.6 percent.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices edged up 0.1 percent in December, as estimated.

In 2024, the average annual rate of change of consumer prices was 1.0 percent versus 5.7 percent in 2023.

Inflation, based on the harmonized index of consumer prices, decelerated slightly to 1.4 percent in December from 1.5 percent in the previous month. Monthly, the HICP increased 0.1 percent. There was no change in figures compared to the previous estimate.

The trade surplus increased to EUR 4.22 billion in November from EUR 4.05 billion in the corresponding month last year.

Exports fell 2.7 percent year-on-year in November, and imports were 3.2 percent lower. Ouflows of motor vehicles recorded the largest reduction.

The decline in exports, determined by the sharp contraction in sales on EU markets, involves not only the main EU trading partners but also the United States and China, the agency said.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, exports grew 1.4 percent over the month, while imports rose only by 0.4 percent. As a result, the trade surplus rose to EUR 3.85 billion from EUR 3.29 billion.