Brussels – Inflation falls: according to a flash estimate released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, euro area inflation should stand at 1.7 per cent in January, down from 2 per cent in December. Considering the main components in the euro area, services are expected to record the highest annual rate in January (3.2 per cent, compared to 3.4 per cent in December), followed by food, alcohol and tobacco (2.7 per cent, compared to 2.5 per cent in December), non-energy industrial goods (0.4 per cent, compared with 0.3 per cent in December), and energy (-4.1 per cent, compared with -1.9 per cent in December). For now, the highest rates are expected in Slovakia (4.2 per cent), Croatia (3.6 per cent), Lithuania (2.8 per cent), Latvia and Ireland (both at 2.6 per cent). At the opposite end of the spectrum are France (0.4 per cent), Finland and Italy (both estimated at 1 per cent), and Belgium (1.4 per cent).
But while the new year begins with good news for Europeans’ wallets, the old year ended with a decline in industrial producer prices, which, according to Eurostat data, fell by 0.3 per cent in the euro area and by 0.4 per cent in the EU in December compared to November 2025. In November 2025, however, prices had risen by 0.7 per cent in the euro area and 0.8 per cent in the EU. Compared with the same month in 2024, industrial producer prices fell by 2.1 per cent in the euro area and 1.9 per cent in the EU in December. Overall, Eurostat notes that the annual average industrial producer price in 2025, compared with 2024, increased by 0.3 per cent in the euro area and 0.5 per cent in the EU.
In particular, in the euro area, in December 2025, compared with November 2025, industrial producer prices rose by 0.3 per cent for intermediate goods and 0.2 per cent for durable consumer goods, while they fell by 1.2 per cent for energy, 0.1 per cent for capital goods, and 0.2 per cent for non-durable consumer goods. Prices in total industry, excluding energy, rose by 0.1 per cent. In the EU, industrial producer prices rose by 0.3 per cent for intermediate goods, 0.1 per cent for capital goods, and 0.2 per cent for durable consumer goods, while they fell by 1.3 per cent for energy and 0.2 per cent for non-durable consumer goods. Prices in total industry, excluding energy, rose by 0.1 per cent.
The largest monthly decreases in industrial producer prices were recorded in Estonia (-3 per cent), Ireland (-2.8 per cent), and Denmark (-1.9 per cent). The most significant increases, on the other hand, were observed in Bulgaria (+1.4 per cent), Portugal (+0.5 per cent), Belgium and Romania (both +0.4 per cent). Italy reported -0.9 per cent in December compared to November.
English version by the Translation Service of Withub
