Inflation in Italy Remains Low in June

ISTAT, Italy's National Statistics Institute, said prices in June were 0.1 percent higher than a month earlier and 0.8 percent above prices for the same month in 2023.

The government statistics entity said that prices were kept low by a slowdown in price increases for unprocessed food, which saw prices rise just 0.4 percent compared to 2.2 percent last year, as well as for durable goods, which saw prices fall by 1.1 percent compared to 0.7 percent in 2023.

In June, prices were pushed higher due to a smaller decline in non-regulated energy prices, which fell by 10.3 percent compared to a 13.5 percent drop the year prior, and an increase in processed food prices, which rose by 2.2 percent compared to 1.8 percent in 2023.

The base inflation rate -- excluding prices for energy and unprocessed food -- was 2.0 percent, the same as a month earlier, while the inflation rate for the year through June was 0.8 percent.

The monthly inflation rate sat at 0.8 percent in five out of six months this year, with a 1.2-percent increase in March as the exception.

Though the European Union has not yet released its preliminary inflation figures for June, Italy's rate has stayed below that of the 20-nation euro currency zone every month since July 2023.

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