German inflation rises to 1.5 pct year-on-year in December

Source: Xinhua | 2020-01-17

Consumer prices in Germany increased by 1.5 percent in December 2019 year-on-year, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said on Thursday.

According to Destatis, the 1.5 percent inflation rate in December, as measured by the consumer price index, was slightly higher than in the previous months. On an annual average, consumer prices in Germany rose by 1.4 percent, the lowest growth rate in three years.

Prices for energy products in Germany were only up 1.4 percent in 2019 after a 4.6 percent increase in 2018. According to Destatis, the "small rise" was mainly due to lower mineral oil prices, although electricity and natural gas prices had gone up "considerably".

Food prices increased at an average rate of 1.4 percent in 2019. However, "there were some contrary price trends for individual products," Destatis noted. Prices for vegetables increased by 6.3 percent, while German consumers paid 3.3 percent less for fruits.

For 2020, the government's economic advisory body, the German Council of Economic Experts, has predicted consumer prices to increase by 1.6 percent.