- Core inflation, which excludes the most volatile elements, decreases one tenth, to 1.2%
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 0.1% in February compared to the previous month, with which the interannual rate remains at 2%. After this result, the interannual rate continues 1.8 points below the maximum of April of last year (3.8%).
If the most volatile elements are excluded – unprocessed food and energy products – the so-called Underlying inflation a tenth is reduced, to 1.2%, a moderation to which all its major components have contributed.
The INE has also published the harmonized CPI (IPCA) for the month of February, the annual rate of which stands at 1.9%, one tenth below that registered the previous month. This rate coincides with the IPCA leading indicator published on February 29. Compared with the estimate for the Monetary Union as a whole, the differential in favor of Spain would improve two tenths and would be eight tenths.
In month-on-month terms, the rise in the CPI in February is mainly explained by the increase in fuels and fuels (1.5%) and processed food (0.2%), partially offset by the fall in clothing and footwear ( -1.7,%) and urban interurban public transport (-0.7%). There is a sharp rise in fresh vegetables and legumes (9.2%) and in eggs (1.4%).
Compared to a year earlier, the main rise occurred in unprocessed food, which increased its interannual rate from 1% in January to 1.8% in February. This upturn mainly responds to the departure of fresh vegetables, whose interannual rate goes from -5% last January to 4% in February; and eggs, which have increased their rate from 2.6% in January to 4.8% in February. On the contrary, it is worth mentioning the moderation of intercity transport by more than one percentage point, up to 3.1%. The rest of the games have maintained a certain tone of stability.
The favorable effect on inflation of the most stable components such as services and non-energy industrial goods, whose respective year-on-year rates decreased by one tenth, stands out. In the first group, the moderation is especially reflected in the communications item, which falls 3.5% in the annual rate, largely due to the prices of the telephone service; and in the second, in the prices of medicines and therapeutic material, whose prices compared to a year earlier decreased by 6.7%, as a consequence of the boost given to pharmaceutical savings through the prescription of generic medicines.
Services deserve a special mention, whose interannual rate drops one tenth, reaching 1.3%, with a slight increase (0.1%) in its monthly rate. With this, these prices continue the trend towards a softening in their growth rate that started in April 2011. Within this chapter, the heading of hotels, cafes and restaurants stands out, which has shown a moderation in its rate since the maximum of April 2011 (1.9%) up to 0.9% last February, when this was one of the traditionally most inflationary chapters in the entire services group.
In summary, the February CPI valuation is positive. Inflation remains stable and remains within the ECB's target band. Core inflation decreases by one tenth and the inflation differential in favor of Spain with respect to its eurozone partners continues to improve, with the positive impact that this has on the competitiveness of our economy.
