Soaring energy prices push Spain’s inflation to highest in nearly 3 decades

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) – Spain’s inflation rate hit 6.7% in December, the highest annual increase since March 1992, according to official data released on Thursday.

December’s inflation is 1.2 percentage points above the 5.5% registered in November, advanced figures published by Spain’s National Statistics Agency (INE) showed.

At the time, several economists suggested inflation was slowing down after it reached 5.4% in October.

Sky-high energy prices are the main cause of Spain’s soaring inflation rate, according to the INE, but increasing food prices are also taking a toll on consumers.

Preliminary data showed food products have surged around 5% compared to Dec. 2020.

As Spain experiences an unprecedented wave of coronavirus infections, the cost of services related to COVID-19, such as testing, soared 18.3% compared to last year.

Core inflation, which does not include the more volatile factors of food and energy, rose 2.1%.

In November, inflation across the eurozone reached 4.9% – the highest since recordkeeping started in 1997, two years before the euro was introduced.