According to the final report from INSEE, consumer prices rose by 0.2% in July, accelerating compared to June (+0.1%) and exceeding economists' forecasts (+0.1%). The latest change was the result of the rising in prices of services (+1.2% after +0.3%), notably those of transport (+9.3% after +2.0%) and those of accommodation services (+12.6% after +4.4%), as well as in prices of energy (+1.4% after +0.8%). Prices of manufactured products are falling due to the summer sales (‑2.3% after +0.1%), as well as food prices to a lesser extent (‑0.2%, as in June).
In annual terms, CPI rose by 2.3%, as expected, after an increase of 2.2% in June. This slight increase resulted from the rise in prices of energy (+8.5% after +4.8%) mainly due to those of gas (+11.4% after ‑10.8%). Conversely, prices of service (+2.6% after +2.9%) and those of food (+0.5% after +0.8%) slowed down year on year. Prices of tobacco (+8.7%) and manufactured products (0.0%) evolved at the same rate as in June.
Meanwhile, the core CPI grew by 1.5% per annum, slowing down compared to June (+1.8%).
The data also showed that in July, the harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) - an indicator that allows to compare inflation in France with inflation in European countries - rose by 0.2% on a monthly basis and by 2.7% per annum. In June, HICP increased by 0.2% for the month and by 2.5% per annum.