Prices rose by 0.3% in November, annual inflation 1%

Barcelona (CNA).- Prices went up by 0.3% in Catalonia during November in comparison to the previous month, and left the annual inflation rate at 1%, the highest recorded in Catalonia since August 2013, when it reached 1.7%. According to the data release this Tuesday by the Spanish National Institute of Statistics (INE), the products that influenced the rise in prices the most were those in the clothing and footwear sectors, due to the winter season, and electricity. Catalonia showed the highest annual inflation rate in Spain, followed by Navarra (0.9%), Asturias (0.8%) and the Canary Islands (0.8%). In the whole of the country prices stood at 0.7%.

The increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was driven mainly by the impact of the clothing and footwear sector, during the winter season, and by housing, specifically by the increase in the cost of electricity. However, the annual inflation trend, in minimum rates, is still being restrained by fuel prices, which dropped in November, compared to the stability they showed during the same month last year.

Thus, the stability of the annual CPI in November is due to the fact that the decline in fuel prices was offset by other factors, such as the rising price of aircraft fuel.

Other sectors that helped heat up inflation were leisure and culture, with organised tours recording higher prices than in November 2015. Fresh food and non-alcoholic beverages also contributed to the increase in inflation. Indeed, the price of legumes and vegetables experienced a less intense reduction in price than in the same month last year.

Spanish inflation rate increased by 0.4% in November

In the whole of Spain, prices rose by in November compared with October, and the annual inflation stood at 0.7%, accumulating three consecutive months of positive inflation. In September it stood at 0.2% and in October at 0.7%.

Core inflation, which does not take into account the most volatile prices – such as those of oil and fresh food - stood in November in Spain at 0.7%, one tenth of a percentage point less than in Catalonia (0.8%).