Consumer price index of June 2019
- Inflation decreases from 1.89 % to 1.73 % in June.
- The consumer price index has decreased by 0.06 point or 0.06 % this month.
- Inflation based on the health index has increased to 1.88 % from 1.78 %.
- The smoothed health index was running at 106.80 points in June.
- The most significant price increases in June were registered for holiday villages, hotel rooms and bread and cereals. However, motor fuels, fruit, personal care products, alcoholic beverages and flowers and plants have had a decreasing effect on the index.
The consumer price index was running at 108.87 points in June 2019. The index has decreased by 0.06 point over the month. Inflation has dropped from 1.89 % to 1.73 %. The health index has gained 0.13 point to 109.02 points. Inflation based on the health index has gone up from 1.78 % to 1.88 %. The most significant price increases in June were registered for holiday villages, hotel rooms and bread and cereals. These increases were mainly offset by price decreases for motor fuels, fruit, personal care products, alcoholic beverages and flowers and plants.
The consumer price index has dropped by 0.06 point or 0.06 % in June 2019 and now stands at 108.87 points, against 108.93 points in May 2019 (2013=100).
The health index has gone up by 0.13 point to 109.02 points in June, compared to 108.89 points in May. The smoothed health index was running at 106.80 points in June. The central index for public service and social benefits, set at 107.20 points, has therefore not been reached. The last time the central index was exceeded was in August 2018.
The products with the largest upward effect in June were holiday villages, hotel rooms and bread and cereals. However, motor fuels, fruit, personal care products, alcoholic beverages and flowers and plants have had the largest decreasing effect on the index. The most important trends this month are:
| Upward: | Effect: | Downward: | Effect: |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holiday villages | +0.105 point | Motor fuels | -0.165 point |
| Hotel rooms | +0.040 point | Fruit | -0.035 point |
| Bread and cereals | +0.035 point | Personal care | -0.030 point |
| Alcoholic beverages | -0.025 point | ||
| Flowers and plants | -0.025 point |
Holiday villages have become 14.1 % more expensive compared to last month. Prices of hotel rooms have increased on average by 5.0 %. Prices for bread and cereals have gone up by 1.1 % in June.
Motor fuels have become on average 4.2 % less expensive compared to last month. Prices of fruit have decreased on average by 2.5 %. Personal care products have become 0.9 % less expensive compared to last month. Prices of alcoholic beverages have decreased on average by 1.6 %. Flowers and plants have become on average 4.8 % cheaper this month.
Inflation now stands at 1.73 %, against 1.89 % in May and 2.08 % in April. Inflation based on the health index amounted to 1.88 % this month compared to 1.78 % in May and 1.96 % in April. Inflation without energy has increased to 1.67 % in June compared to 1.47 % last month and 1.57 % in April. Core inflation, which does not take into account price evolutions of energy products and unprocessed food, stands at 1.71 % in June, compared to 1.49 % in May and 1.67 % in April.
Food inflation now stands at 0.64 %, compared to 0.75 % in May and 0.33 % in April. Fresh fruit now costs 2.3 % less than in June 2018. Fresh vegetable prices are on the rise: 6.9 % on an annual basis. Fish and shellfish are 2.5 % less expensive than a year ago. Prices for non-alcoholic beverages and alcoholic beverages have decreased by 0.1 % and 0.9 % respectively compared to June last year. Tobacco prices have gone up by 5.2 % compared to June last year. Energy inflation now stands at 2.23 %, compared to 5.50 % last month and 6.50 % in April. Electricity is now 4.5 % more expensive than a year ago. Natural gas is now 2.9 % less expensive than in June last year. Prices for domestic heating oil, calculated based on a smoothed 12-month moving average, have increased by 14.4 % in one year. Motor fuels are 2.5 % less expensive than last year. Inflation for services has gone up to 2.73 % from 2.13 %. Inflation for rents has slightly increased and now stands at 1.02 %, compared to 1.01 % in May.
The following products and services have registered the sharpest price increases compared to last year in June:
| Upward: | Inflation: |
|---|---|
| Holiday centres, camping sites and youth hostels | 25.9% |
| Hotels and similar services | 19.0% |
| Newspapers | 16.0% |
| Domestic heating oil | 14.4% |
| Postal mail | 12.5% |
| Potatoes | 11.6% |
| Other tobacco products (e.g. loose tobacco) | 10.1% |
| Fresh vegetables, excluding potatoes | 6.9% |
| Magazines and periodicals | 6.7% |
| Crisps | 6.3% |
| Contribution to national health services | 6.1% |
| Travel insurance | 5.9% |
The following products and services have registered the sharpest price decreases compared to last year in June:
| Downward: | Inflation: |
|---|---|
| Fresh shellfish | -17.8% |
| Other fuels (LPG) | -11.9% |
| Eggs | -9.7% |
| Alcoholic soft drinks | -8.2% |
| Other information processing equipment (e.g. smart watch) | -4.9% |
| Pre-recorded recording media (bluray, dvd) | -4.5% |
| Cookers, hobs and ovens | -3.7% |
| Smoked fish and shellfish | -3.6% |
| Lager beer | -3.4% |
| Dried fruit and nuts | -3.4% |
| Other recording media (memory card) | -3.2% |
| Frozen shellfish | -3.0% |
The main group with the largest upward effect[i] on inflation in June was "Hotels, cafés and restaurants" with an effect of 0.30 percentage point. The largest downward effect was measured for "food and non-alcoholic beverages" (-0.19 percentage point).
The main group with the largest contribution[ii] to inflation is “housing, water and energy” with 0.46 percentage point. The lowest contribution to inflation was registered by the main group "communication", with 0.00 percentage point.
| 2013 = 100 | March | April | May | June |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer price index | 108.85 | 108.91 | 108.93 | 108.87 |
| Inflation | 2.33% | 2.08% | 1.89% | 1.73% |
| Health index | 109.04 | 108.98 | 108.89 | 109.02 |
| Smoothed health index* | 106.52 | 106.65 | 106.74 | 106.80 |
| * defined in the law of 23 April 2015 on the promotion of employment (Belgian Official Journal of 27 April 2015) | ||||
[i] An 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.