Finland: Harmonized inflation falls in September
Latest reading: Harmonized inflation eased to 0.9% in September from August’s 1.1%, remaining below the ECB’s 2.0% target and among the lowest in the Euro area. Looking at the details of the release, a sharper drop in transport prices and falling costs for housing and utilities outweighed rebounding prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages.
As a result, annual average harmonized inflation fell to 0.9% in September (August: 1.1%). Meanwhile, consumer price inflation fell to 0.8% in September from August’s 1.2%.
Finally, harmonized consumer prices increased 0.46% from the previous month in September, swinging from the 0.56% fall seen in August. September’s figure marked the highest reading since February.
Panelist insight: Dankse Bank’s Pasi Kuoppamäki commented:
“We expect an increase in the VAT rate to 25.5% in the autumn, which will have a fairly direct impact on prices. We expect that inflation will nevertheless remain at a low level, as the falling energy prices will also lower the prices of goods in the longer term and weak demand will increase the pressure for price competition.”