Final data provided by the National Statistics Institute (INE) showed that consumer price growth slowed to 2.2% per year in April from 2.3% per year in March. Economists also expected a 2.2% increase. As a result, inflation reached a 6-month low.
The key factors in slowing inflation were a sharp slowdown in housing and utility costs (4.2% vs 5.7% in March), particularly those of electricity (10.6% vs 12.8%) and gas (-3.2% vs 8.4%). Prices for transportation fell 1.6% after a 0.9% decline in March. Among the groups with a positive influence on the annual rate were: Leisure and culture, whose annual rate increased three points to 2.7%. This trend was due to the rise in package tour prices, compared to the decline in April 2024.
The data also showed that on a monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.6%, as expected, after a 0.1% increase in March. This was the strongest growth since October 2024.
Core CPI - excluding energy and fresh food - rose by 2.4% per year, as expected, after an increase of 2.0% per year in March (the lowest since November 2021). On a monthly basis, the core CPI rose by 1.0% after a 0.4% increase in March.
The data also showed that in April, the harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) - an indicator that allows to compare inflation in Spain with inflation in European countries - rose by 0.6% compared to March and by 2.2% per year. In March, HICP grew by 0.7% on a monthly basis and by 2.2% per year.