Inflation at -0.03% in August

In August, the annual rate of inflation as measured by the Retail Price Index stood at -0.03 per cent.

In the month under review, the annual rate stood at -0.03 per cent. A year earlier the annual rate was 1.50 per cent.

The largest downward impacts on annual inflation were brought about by the Water, Electricity, Gas and Fuels Index (-0.63 percentage points) and the Transport and Communication Index (-0.30 percentage points). This was mainly due to lower electricity rates and airfares respectively.

The main upward impacts were recorded in the Recreation and Culture Index (0.32 percentage points), the Beverages and Tobacco Index (0.22 percentage points) and the Household Equipment and House Maintenance Costs Index (0.12 percentage points), mainly due to higher private tuition fees, prices of cigarettes and household appliances respectively.

The twelve-month moving average rate was 0.35 per cent.

Euro area annual inflation was 0.4% in August 2014, unchanged compared to July. In August 2013 the rate was 1.3%. Monthly inflation was 0.1% in August 2014.

European Union annual inflation was 0.5% in August 2014, unchanged compared to July. A year earlier the rate was 1.5%. Monthly inflation was 0.1% in August 2014.

In August 2014, negative annual rates were observed in Bulgaria (-1.0%), Spain (-0.5%), Estonia, Greece, Italy, and Slovakia (all -0.2%), Poland and Portugal (both -0.1%). The highest annual rates were recorded in Austria and the United Kingdom (both 1.5%), Romania (1.3%) and Finland (1.2%). Compared with July 2014, annual inflation fell in seventeen Member States, remained stable in two and rose in nine.

The largest upward impacts to euro area annual inflation came from restaurants & cafés (+0.08 percentage points), rents (+0.07) and maintenance of vehicles (+0.05), while fuels for transport (-0.17), fruit (-0.12) and telecommunications (-0.11) had the biggest downward impacts