Inflation rises to 3.6% in December

The year-on-year change in consumer prices was 3.6 per cent in December, according to Statistics Finland.

In November, inflation stood at 3.3 per cent.

Consumer prices were raised most in December by increases in average interest rate on housing loans, consumer credits and the prices of package international holidays outside the EU from one year ago.

The rising of consumer prices from one year back was curbed most by reductions in the prices of electricity, owner-occupied flats and real estates.

The month-on-month change of consumer prices was 0.3 per cent, which was caused by higher prices of electricity and international flights, for example.

The core inflation of Consumer Price Index was 5.5 per cent. Core inflation does not include food and energy price changes, as the short-term price fluctuations in these are higher compared to other commodity groups.

The price index of electricity was adjusted downwards in September 2023 concerning the data for August 2023. The adjustment does not affect the use of the Consumer Price Index.

According to the preliminary data on the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), the rate of inflation in the euro area was 2.9 per cent in December.