BERLIN (Reuters) – German consumer prices in April posted their smallest increase since the start of the war in Ukraine, as energy prices eased further.
Consumer prices, harmonised to compare with other European Union countries, rose by 7.6% on the year in April, preliminary data from the federal statistics office showed on Friday. This was the lowest year-on-year reading since March 2022.
Analysts had expected harmonised annual inflation to remain unchanged from March at 7.8%.
The rise in energy prices – up 6.8% in April – was again milder than the overall inflation index, as was the case in March, showing a downward trend in energy prices.
A base effect explained part of that easing: the index was at a high in April 2022 after energy prices soared following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, so the year-on-year comparison was smaller.
In addition, German government relief measures were also contributing to the current easing of energy prices, the statistics office said.
Food prices in April continued to show above-average growth, posting a 17.2% year-on-year increase.
The statistics office offers a breakdown for April figures on its website.
(Reporting by Maria Martinez, Rachel More and Miranda Murray)
