Consumer price index - April 2025
- Inflation goes from 2.91% to 2.55% in April.
- The consumer price index decreases by 1.12 points or 0.83% this month.
- Inflation based on the health index has fallen from 3.16% to 3,00%.
- The smoothed health index amounted to 132.79 points in April.
- Core inflation, which does not take into account price evolutions of energy products and unprocessed food, stands at 2.82% in April, compared to 2.71% in March.
- The most significant price increases in April were registered for plane tickets and hotel rooms. However, natural gas, electricity, travels abroad and city trips, dairy products and eggs, motor fuels, fish and seafood, bread and cereals, fruit and meat had a decreasing effect on the index.
Inflation stands at 2.55% in April compared to 2.91% in March and 3.55% in February. Inflation based on the health index amounted to 3,00% this month compared to 3.16% in March and 3.70% in February. Inflation without energy stands at 2.71% in April, compared to 2.57% in March and 2.29% in February. Core inflation, which does not take into account price evolutions of energy products and unprocessed food, stood at 2.82% in April, compared to 2.71% in March and 3.10% in February.
Comment on inflation
With regard to energy, inflation stands at 0.95% this month, compared to 5.48% last month and 8.17% in February. For electricity, inflation is currently at 17.4% compared to 20.2% last month. For natural gas, it went from 25.4% last month to 20.8% this month. Compared to last month, natural gas prices decreased by 5.9% and those for electricity by 4.6%. Prices for domestic heating oil, calculated based on a smoothed 12-month moving average, have decreased by 11.2% in one year. Motor fuels cost 11.6% less than in April last year and decreased by 1.4% this month compared to the previous month.
Inflation for services has increased to 3.96% from 3.88%. Inflation for rents has increased to 3.51% from 3.27%. Food inflation (including alcoholic beverages) now stands at 2.48% compared to 2.45% last month.
Energy inflation goes from 5.48% in March to 0.95% in April and accounts for 0.09 percentage points to total inflation. With an inflation of 2.48%, food products account for 0.49 percentage points.
The price of natural gas has decreased by 5.9% in April compared to the previous month. The price of electricity has also decreased by 4.6% on average this month.
Some products and services that rose sharply in price compared to April last year are:
| Upward: | Inflation |
|---|---|
| Cigarettes | 25.1% |
| Domestic services | 22.6% |
| Natural gas | 20.8% |
| Electricity | 17.4% |
| Fruit and vegetable juices | 17.0% |
| Jewellery | 15.8% |
| Other tobacco products (loose tobacco) | 14.8% |
| Tax on the discharge of domestic waste water | 13.4% |
Some products and services that dropped sharply in price compared to April last year are:
| Downward: | Inflation |
|---|---|
| Mobile telephone services | -20.5% |
| Video equipment (television) | -20.1% |
| Smartphones | -16.5% |
| Petrol | -12.2% |
| Computers | -11.7% |
| Domestic heating oil | -11.2% |
| Diesel | -10.8% |
| Other edible oils (e.g. frying oil) | -8.3% |
The main group with the largest upward effect[i] on inflation in April was “Housing, water and energy” with an effect of 0.65 percentage points. The largest downward effect was measured for “Transport” (-0.58 percentage points).
The main group with the largest contribution[ii] to inflation was “Housing, water and energy” with 0.95 percentage points. The lowest contribution to inflation was registered by the main group “Clothing and footwear”, with -0.12 percentage points.
The first inflation estimate according to the European harmonised index of consumer prices (HICP flash estimate) for Belgium amounts to 3,1% in April 2025.
Comment on the level of the indices
The consumer price index fell by 1.12 points or 0.83% in April and now stands at 134.44 points, compared to 135.56 points in March (2013=100). The health index went down by 1.14 points to 134.77 points in April, compared to 135.91 points in March. The smoothed health index amounted to 132.79 points in April. The next central index for public service and social benefits is set at 133.28 points.
The most significant price increases in April were registered for plane tickets and hotel rooms. However, natural gas, electricity, travels abroad and city trips, dairy products and eggs, motor fuels, fish and seafood, bread and cereals, fruit and meat had a decreasing effect on the index.
The most important trends this month are:
| Upward: | Effect: | Downward: | Effect: |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plane tickets | +0.070 points | Natural gas | -0.320 points |
| Hotel rooms | +0.055 points | Electricity | -0.210 points |
| Travels abroad and city trips | -0.135 points | ||
| Dairy products and eggs | -0.080 points | ||
| Motor fuels | -0.060 points | ||
| Fish and seafood | -0.060 points | ||
| Bread and cereals | -0.055 points | ||
| Fruit | -0.050 points | ||
| Meat | -0.050 points |
Plane ticket prices rose by an average of 11.1% this month. Hotel rooms are on average 5.4% more expensive.
Natural gas costs 5.9% less than in the previous month. Prices for electricity and travels abroad and city trips decreased on average by 4.6% compared to the previous month. Dairy products and eggs registered an average price decrease of 2.8%. Prices for motor fuels as well as bread and cereals decreased by 1.4% on average, and those for fish and seafood by 3.8%. Finally, fruit registered a price decrease of 2.9% compared to the previous month, and meat a decline of 1.0%.
| 2013 = 100 | January | February | March | April |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer price index | 135.39 | 135.66 | 135.56 | 134.44 |
| Inflation | 4.08% | 3.55% | 2.91% | 2.55% |
| Health index | 135.52 | 135.79 | 135.91 | 134.77 |
| Smoothed health index* | 131.18 | 131.87 | 132.53 | 132.79 |
| * defined in the law of 23 April 2015 on the promotion of employment (Belgian Official Journal of 27 April 2015) | ||||
[i] The effect on inflation shows the changes on the inflation rate by including this product group in the CPI calculation. The effect not only takes the weight of the product group into account, but it also takes into account whether the product group inflation is higher or lower than that of the total expenditure (overall CPI).
[ii] The contribution to inflation of a specific product group shows how much of the change in the total expenditure is due to the price variation of this product group.