Consumer price index of May 2019
- Inflation decreases from 2.08 % to 1.89 % in May.
- The consumer price index this month increases by 0.02 point or 0.02 %.
- Inflation based on the health index has declined from 1.96 % to 1.78 %.
- The smoothed health index amounts to 106.74 points in May.
- The most significant price increases in May were registered for motor fuels, meat and flowers and plants. However, holiday villages, airplane tickets, vegetables, hotel rooms and bread and cereals have had a decreasing effect on the index.
The consumer price index amounts to 108.93 points in May 2019. It has increased by 0.02 point over the month. Inflation has dropped from 2.08 % to 1.89 %. The health index has decreased by 0.09 point this month and now stands at 108.89 points. Inflation based on the health index has fallen to 1.78 % from 1.96 %. The most significant price increases in May were registered for motor fuels, meat and flowers and plants. These increases were mainly offset by price decreases for holiday villages, airplane tickets, vegetables, hotel rooms and bread and cereals.
The consumer price index has increased by 0.02 point or 0.02 % in May 2019 and now amounts to 108.93 points, compared to 108.91 points in April 2019 (2013=100).
The health index has gone down by 0.09 point to 108.89 points in May, compared to 108.98 points in April. The smoothed health index amounts to 106.74 points in May. 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.
Products with the largest increasing effect in May were motor fuels, meat and flowers and plants. Most of the downward pressure came from holiday villages, airplane tickets, vegetables, hotel rooms and bread and cereals. The most important trends this month are:
| Upward: | Effect: | Downward: | Effect: |
|---|---|---|---|
| Motor fuels | +0.090 point | Holiday villages | -0.080 point |
| Meat | +0.035 point | Airplane tickets | -0.060 point |
| Flowers and plants | +0.030 point | Vegetables | -0.045 point |
| Hotel rooms | -0.035 point | ||
| Bread and cereals | -0.025 point |
Motor fuels have become 2.3 % more expensive compared to last month. Meat has become on average 0.8 % more expensive. Prices for flowers and plants have increased on average by 5.5 % in May.
Holiday villages have become on average 9.6 % less expensive compared to last month. Prices for airplane tickets have fallen by 8.7 % on average. Both are a consequence of the Easter holidays last month. Vegetables have become on average 2.3 % cheaper compared to last month. Prices of hotel rooms have decreased on average by 4.3 %. Prices for bread and cereals have gone down by 0.8 % in May.
Inflation now amounts to 1.89 % compared to 2.08 % in April and 2.33 % in March. Inflation based on the health index amounted to 1.78 % this month compared to 1.96 % in April and 2.18 % in March. Inflation without energy has decreased to 1.47 % in May compared to 1.57 % last month and 1.61 % in March. Core inflation, which does not take into account price evolutions of energy products and unprocessed food, stands at 1.49 % in May, compared to 1.67 % in April and 1.66 % in March.
Food inflation stands at 0.75 %, compared to 0.33 % in the previous month and 1.09 % in March. Fresh fruit now costs 2.9 % less than in May 2018. Fresh vegetable prices are on the rise: 5.3 % on an annual basis. Fish and shellfish are 0.8 % less expensive than a year ago. Prices for non-alcoholic beverages and alcoholic beverages have increased by 0,1 % and 1,2 %, respectively, compared to May last year. Tobacco prices have gone up by 4.5 % compared to May last year. Energy inflation is now running at 5.50 %, against 6.50 % last month and 8.77 % in March. Electricity is now 5.4 % more expensive than a year ago. Natural gas is 1.1 % less expensive than in May last year. Prices for domestic heating oil, calculated based on a smoothed 12-month moving average, have increased by 16.6 % in one year. Motor fuels are 4.3 % more expensive than last year. Inflation for services has gone down to 2.13 % from 2.69 %. This decrease is mainly due to the Easter holidays last month. Inflation for rents has increased and now stands at 1.01 %, compared to 0.91 % in April.
The following products and services have registered the sharpest price increases compared to last year in May:
| Upward: | Inflation: |
|---|---|
| Domestic heating oil | 16.6% |
| Newspapers | 16.0% |
| Postal mail | 12.5% |
| Potatoes | 11.6% |
| Other tobacco products (e.g. loose tobacco) | 7.5% |
| Magazines and periodicals | 7.2% |
| Other meats (e.g. rabbit, horse meat) | 6.7% |
| Holiday centres, camping sites and youth hostels | 6.2% |
| Contribution to national health services | 6.1% |
| Travel insurance | 5.9% |
| Fresh vegetables, excluding potatoes | 5.5% |
| Electricity | 5.4% |
The following products and services have registered the sharpest price decreases compared to last year in May:
| Downward: | Inflation: |
|---|---|
| Fresh shellfish | -11.2% |
| Eggs | -10.7% |
| Rice | -7.3% |
| Smoked fish and shellfish | -5.4% |
| Other information processing equipment (e.g. smart watch) | -4.5% |
| Pizza and quiche | -4.2% |
| Alcoholic soft drinks | -4.2% |
| Fruit and vegetable juices | -3.8% |
| Other edible oils (e.g. corn oil) | -3.7% |
| Video equipment (TV, ...) | -3.7% |
| Coffee | -2.9% |
| Fresh fruit | -2.9% |
The main group with the largest upward effect[i] on inflation in May was "housing, water, energy" with an effect on inflation of 0.26 percentage point. The largest downward effect was measured for "food and non-alcoholic beverages" (-0.24 percentage point).
The main group with the largest contribution[ii] to inflation is “housing, water and energy” with 0.55 percentage point. The lowest contribution to inflation was registered by the main group "communication", with 0.00 percentage point.
| 2013 = 100 | February | March | April | May |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer price index | 108.52 | 108.85 | 108.91 | 108.93 |
| Inflation | 2.17% | 2.33% | 2.08% | 1.89% |
| Health index | 108.78 | 109.04 | 108.98 | 108.89 |
| Smoothed health index* | 106.38 | 106.52 | 106.65 | 106.74 |
| * 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.