New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the annual rate of inflation eased to 1.7% in August from an annual rate of 2.2% in July.
The CSO said this is the first time since June 2021 that its official measure of annual inflation has been below 2%.
Today’s figures show that the most significant increases in the 12 months to August were seen in restaurants and hotels, with prices there rising by 4.5% due to more expensive drinks and food.
Miscellaneous goods and services, which includes the likes of hairdressing, jewellery, insurance and childcare, rose by 4.1%.
The prices of clothing and footwear dropped by 6.2% in August compared to the same time last year, while costs for housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels eased by 1.9%.
On a monthly basis, the CSO said that consumer prices rose by 0.1% in the month, with the biggest price increases seen in the cost of clothing and footwear, which rose by 2.8% due a recovery from sales, while prices and restaurants and hotels rose by 0.5%.
Recreation and culture prices fell by 1.4% on a monthly basis in August, while transport costs dipped 0.8% on the back of lower airfares.
The CSO said that inflation, as measured by the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), which strips out mortgage interest costs, eased to 1.1% year-on-year, from 1.5%, in line with flash data from earlier this month.
Article Source – Inflation eases to three year low of 1.7% in August – RTE
