The decline in inflation is mainly due to the decline in energy prices. According to the statistics office, the increase in energy prices in November was “only” 70% compared to November 2021. The annual difference was still 173% in October.
Statistics Netherlands also gives the inflation figure without energy and fuel costs, so inflation appears stable compared to the previous month. In October there was an annual price increase of 6.9 percent, in November that figure was 6.8 percent.
Food prices are rising
CBS Chief Economist Peter Hein van Mulligen notes that the period of high inflation is not over yet. “Food prices have continued to rise. It was now more than 15 percent more expensive than it was a year ago. It’s the first time food prices have risen above average inflation, something we’ve never seen before.”
Previously, based on the European calculation method, inflation in November was 11.2 percent year-on-year. The difference is due to a slightly different calculation method than that used by Statistics Netherlands. The cost of living is not taken into account in the European data, to facilitate comparison with other countries.