Year-on-year inflation has slowed to 3.2 % in May, 0.9 points less than the rate recorded in April, mainly due to lower fuel prices and, to a lesser extent, to the moderation in the price of food and non-alcoholic beverages. Core inflation (excluding energy products and unprocessed food) has fallen 0.5 points to 6.1%, according to the leading indicator published on Tuesday by the National Statistics Institute (INE).
The difference between the year-on-year rates of core and headline inflation has widened to 2.9 points, from 1.5 points a month earlier. If the INE confirms this data on June 13, inflation will be at the levels of a couple of years ago, when the rise in electricity prices began. Details of the weight that each group has had in the 0.9 point cut in the annual inflation rate will not be known until that day. On a monthly basis, consumer prices fell by 0.1% in May compared with April.
In harmonised terms, the CPI stood at 2.9 %, 0.3 points below the general rate. For the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the May inflation data "confirm the effectiveness of the government's measures". "The moderation of food prices and the fall in fuel prices position our country as one of those with the lowest inflation in the European Union", said the first vice-president, Nadia Calviño, in statements to the media.