Italy April EU-harmonised CPI slows to 6.6% y/y, slightly above forecasts

The HICP was slightly above the median forecast of a 6.5% year-on-year rise, in a Reuters survey of 15 analysts.

Official statistics agency ISTAT also reported that the main domestic price index (NIC), was up 0.2% on the month and up 6.2% annually in April, following a 6.5% annual rate in March.

The sharply different month-on-month rates between HICP and NIC was due to the price rebound after cut-price winter sales for clothes and footwear. This was not reflected in the NIC, which does not include prices affected by temporary discounts.

Core inflation (net of fresh food and energy) was running at 2.7% year-on-year on the HICP index in April, up from 2.1% in March.

ISTAT gave the following preliminary breakdown:

The EU-harmonised index (HICP):

Apr Mar Feb

Monthly change +0.6 +2.4 +0.8

Yr/yr inflation +6.6 +6.8 +6.2

Index (base 2015=100) 112.0 111.3 108.7

The NIC index:

Monthly change +0.2 +1.0 +0.9

Yr-on-yr inflation +6.2 +6.5 +5.7

Index (base 2015=100) 110.6 110.4 109.3

ISTAT gave the following sector-by-sector breakdown for the HICP in April:

Sector m/m yr/yr

Food 1.5 6.8

Alcoholic drinks, tobacco 0.2 0.5

Clothing 5.4 1.5

Housing, electricity, fuel -0.1 26.8

Domestic goods 0.9 3.9

Health spending 0.3 0.9

Transport -1.4 9.7

Communications 0.3 -2.7

Recreation -1.4 -0.7

Education 0.0 -0.5

Hotels, restaurants 1.4 3.7

Other goods, services 0.6 1.5

(Reporting by Antonella Cinelli, editing by Gavin Jones)