According to the final data from Eurostat, in August 2023, consumer prices in the eurozone increased by 5.2% year-on-year. This is a slight decrease compared to inflation of 5.3% in July, but the current figure reached the lowest since January last year. Initial expectations assumed that inflation would remain at the level of July, so the current indicator came as a surprise to market participants. In August, energy prices decreased by 3.3% YoY, while in July a decrease of 6.1% was recorded. A slowdown in price growth was also seen in the categories of food, alcohol and tobacco products – up to 9.7% compared with 10.8% in July. Service sector inflation slowed to 5.5% from 5.6%. Core inflation (CPI Core index, which excludes food and energy) remained at 5.3% in August, which is in line with expectations. In July, the CPI Core index rose by 5.5%. On a monthly basis, prices rose by 0.5% in August, and not by 0.6%, as previously expected.
