The relief for families’ pockets when they shop at the supermarket continues. Food inflation moderated to 1.7% year-on-year in November, a three-year low. That is, prices rose compared to the same month last year, but less than in recent months, and with significant falls, such as the 3.7% decrease in olive oil prices.
This last data is a milestone in this inflation crisis. More specifically, from the end of the price crisis, because it is the first drop in ‘liquid gold’ since March 2021. Olive oil has been one of the most uncontrolled products in recent yearswith increases of up to more than 70% in 2023.
Meanwhile, general inflation rose to 2.4% last month in its year-on-year calculation, as confirmed by the INE this Friday. In other words, life is 2.4% more expensive today than it was a year ago. The CPI (Consumer Price Index) has grown six tenths compared to October, when it stood at 1.8%, mainly due to the increase in the cost of electricity and fuel, “compared to the drop in November of last year” , according to Statistics.
With the November data, the average CPI in the last year stands at 2.8%, the reference for pension increases in 2025. This average inflation is one point less than last year and almost three times lower than the of 2022, the worst year of this inflation crisis that our country and the entire eurozone are saying goodbye to.
The general CPI fell to 1.5% in September. Despite the increase since then, it is still close to the theoretical objective of 2% of the European Central Bank (ECB) and allows the recovery of purchasing power for families, both due to wage increases and the historic creation of jobs (more people have employment in each home).
The data for October and November are also marked by the increase in VAT on basic foods. This is a process of normalization of this tax that the Government has planned in stages, after lowering it from the start of 2023 to try to moderate price increases in stores and supermarkets.
A crisis of loss of purchasing power
In the monthly measurement, the general CPI has advanced 0.2% this month compared to October. That is, life is 0.2% more expensive than a month ago and 2.4% more expensive than a year ago.
Core inflation, which excludes energy and food from its calculation as they are considered the most volatile products and services in the shopping basket, has continued to fall to 2.4% in the year-on-year calculation, and barely grew by 0. 1% in the monthly rate.
Finally, in accumulated terms, the CPI has grown by around 16% since mid-2021, when the inflation crisis began as a result of the end of the pandemic, which was then exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Workers have only been able to partially recover from this ‘bite’ to their salaries and other income, and little by little.
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