Catalan inflation increases to 3.3% in April due to housing and food prices

Inflation in Catalonia rose by two-tenths to 3.3% in April, according to figures published on Tuesday by Spain's National Statistics Institute (INE).   

The increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) - the inflation rate - is largely due to a rise in housing and food prices.

Housing prices in Catalonia rose by 3.9% in April, almost three-tenths more than in March.  

The price of food and non-alcoholic beverages also rose by two-tenths of a percent on the month to 4.1%.  

The year-on-year increase in restaurant and hotel prices was also notable at 4.2%, although it was six-tenths lower than in March.  

Transportation prices rose 3.4%, two-tenths less than in March, while education prices were stable at 3.3%. 

Rising food prices: a closer look

Food prices in Catalonia rose by 4.2% in April, two-tenths more than in March. 

The foods that increased the most were pork, which rose by 3.9%, and lamb and mutton, which rose by 8.8%, three-tenths more than last month. 

Oil prices continue to grow up to 51.1%, almost three percentage points more than in March. 

Fresh fruits also increased by 13.4%, while vegetables and legumes fell by 5.2%. 

Spain's inflation mirrors Catalonia

In Spain as a whole, inflation in April mirrored that of Catalonia: 3.3%, with an increase of one-tenth compared to inflation in March.  

The increase was mainly due to the rise in housing prices, which increased by 2.5 percentage points year-on-year to 4%. 

The rise in gas prices also had a strong impact on the inflation rate, as did electricity prices, which rose less but are still higher than in the same month last year. 

Food prices also increased by 0.4%, reaching 4.7%.

Prices increased in all Spanish regions, and where they rose less was in Melilla (2.5%) and Navarra (2.9%).