Harmonized inflation plunged in June 2023 compared to June last year, falling to the lowest level in nearly two years due to a significant drop in energy prices.

According to data published by the Statistical Service on Wednesday, the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) rose by 2.8% between June 2022 and June 2023.

Compared to the previous month, the HICP went up by 0.3%, and for the period January - June 2023 the HICP rose by 4.9% compared to the corresponding period of the previous year.

Compared to June 2022, the largest changes were noted in Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages, that went up by 10.6%) and Transport that dropped by 7.2%.

 Compared to May 2023, the largest changes were recorded in categories Restaurants and Hotels, up by 2.8% and Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels, down by 2.8%.

For the period January - June 2023, compared to the corresponding period of the previous year, the largest changes were noted in Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels, that rose 9.7%, Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages, that went up 8.9% and Restaurants and Hotels, that increased by 7.1%.

As regards the economic origin, the largest changes when compared to the index of June 2022 were recorded in Energy, with a decrease of 15.4% and Food-Alcoholic Beverages-Tobacco, that went up 8.9%.

When compared to the index of the previous month, the largest change was monitored in category Energy, that went down by 3.4%.

According to the Statistical Service's data, excluding consumption tax increases, the HICP, and by extension, inflation, increased in the first half of 2023 (January – June) by only 0.05%, compared to the corresponding period last year. This is the lowest six-month annual rate of increase in inflation since the first half of 2021.

In the second half of 2022 inflation had increased by 4.75% and in the first half of the same year by 4.36%, compared to the corresponding period of 2021.