July prices in Hungary barely up compared with June

Consumer prices in Hungary rose by an average of 17.6 percent in July compared to the same month last year, but compared with this June, they increased by just 0.3 percent, according to the KSH (Central Statistical Office) flash release.
On a year-on-year basis, the rate of price increases is slowing down, from 20 percent in June to 17.6 percent in July, marking the first time in ten months that the rate of price increases has dropped below 20 percent.

In 12 months, food prices rose by 23 percent compared with July a year ago, so prices are almost a quarter higher this year than a year ago.

The biggest price increases were for eggs (30 percent), dairy products (29.5), coffee (28), bread (26), pastries (25) and butter and butter-based sandwich spreads (24). Household energy rose by 35 percent, including a 47 percent inrease for piped gas and 26 percent for electricity. The price of fuel rose by 21 percent over a year. Prices of spirits and tobacco increased by 14 percent on average.

Compared with the previous month, June, prices rose by 0.3 percent on average. Food was on average 0.9 percent cheaper, including eggs (5 percent), milk (4.4 percent), bread (3.9 percent), butter and butter-based sandwich spreads (3.8 percent), dairy products (3.4 percent), seasonal food (potatoes, fresh vegetables, fresh local fruit and tropical fruit combined) (2.8 percent), poultry (2.6 percent), cheese (2.5 percent) and pasta (2.0 percent).

A recent survey shows that Fidesz's popularity hasn't eroded even with inflation being over 20 percent year-on-year.

Inflation peaked at 25.7 percent in Hungary this January, with the year-on-year rate of increase in a gradual decline since then. This is mainly due to the fact that the external drivers of inflation are mostly behind us, with the base effect also at play: this means that as the months pass, we are comparing this year's prices with higher and higher figures from last year.

While it may seem like a success that inflation in Hungary has fallen so much over the past six months, it is still very high by international standards. For example, Eurostat data show that inflation in Hungary was 19.9 percent in June, compared with just over a quarter of that in the euro area at a mere 5.5 percent.