Italy’s inflation rate decreases from 6.4% to 5.9%

According to the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in July was 5.9%, down from the 6.4% published in June.

According to ISTAT, prices for processed foods, non-regulated energy products, and transportation services have all exhibited a “deceleration” in July. These three categories are crucial to the calculation of inflation.

According to the institute, prices for non-regulated energy services rose by 7.0% in July compared to 8.4% in June, and by 10.5% for processed food, down from 11.5% the previous month, while the growth rate for transportation-related services slowed to 2.4% in July from 4.7% a month earlier.

Italy has criticized the European Central Bank’s (ECB) approach to taming rising inflation by steadily hiking its benchmark interest rate, claiming the tactic slows down economic development.

Italy’s GDP contracted by 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2022 and by 0.3% in the second quarter of 2023, with 0.6% growth in the intermediate first quarter of the year. Italy has seen negative growth in two of the previous three quarters.