The data show that electricity and food are peaking higher than expected price growth
Inflation in Sweden has soared to double digits for the first time in more than thirty years, driven by rising electricity and food prices, Statistics Sweden said on Friday.
Sweden’s inflation adjusted for fixed interest rates (KPIF), the measure used by the country’s central bank, jumped to 10.2% year-on-year in December, up from 9.5% in November. The figures are higher than the interest rate of 9.1% that the Riksbank expects and 9.8% expected by economists.
While inflation is cooling in some eurozone countries, Sweden is still seeing price increases pick up and has now reached its highest level since 1991.
The consumer price index (CPI) accelerated to 12.3%, up from 11.5% in November. That was driven by record electricity prices, which rose 28% in December from the previous month, and 45.3% from a year earlier, official figures showed.
“The fact that inflation excluding energy prices is once again surprising on the upside of the Riksbank’s forecasts gives the overall impression that progress has been made to curb inflation so far,” says senior economist at Svenska Handelsbanken AB, Johan Lof.
On a year-on-year basis, prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by 18.2%, while furnishings and household goods rose by 16.3%. Consumer prices rose 2.1% in monthly terms, representing the strongest increase since January 1993.
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(RT.com)
Source: sn.dk