Good news for French households. The consumer price index increased by 1.1% year-on-year in France in September, marking a clear slowdown compared to the 1.8% increase recorded in August, thanks to the decline in energy , INSEE indicated on Tuesday.
The evolution of the consumer price index was revised down by 0.1 point compared to a first estimate published at the end of September, which established it at 1.2%, said the National Institute of statistics in a press release.
In its first estimate, the slowdown in inflation was explained both by the slowdown in the rise in prices of services (2.5% year-on-year in September after 3% in August) and the decrease in prices of energy (-3.3%) and manufactured products (-0.3%). The cost of food products (+0.5% over one year) and tobacco (+8.7%) had, for its part, evolved at the same rate as in August, according to this provisional estimate.
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Below the symbolic bar of 2%
The consumer price index (CPI) therefore remains for the second month in a row below the inflation target of the European Central Bank, set at 2%.
The ECB has already ratified a cycle of loosening of its monetary policy in view of the inflation figures in the euro zone (2.2% over one year in August). After making an initial reduction of 0.25 percentage points in its key rates in June, the European Central Bank reiterated a further reduction of 0.25 percentage points in mid-September. The deposit rate rose to 3.5% on September 18 while the refinancing rate and marginal lending facility rate stood at 3.65% and 3.90%, respectively.
(With AFP)
