In October, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in the Canary Islands increased by 4.3 percent compared to the previous year, remaining consistent with the figure from the previous month, as per the final data released by the National Statistics Institute (INE) on Friday.
Furthermore, with the October data, prices in the Canary Islands have increased for the second consecutive month. In monthly terms, inflation in the Canary Islands saw a 0.6 percent increase, and the year-to-date rise has reached 3.9 percent.
In the archipelago, prices in October rose compared to the previous year in various categories: food and non-alcoholic beverages, with an increase of 12% (-1.5 points compared to the previous month); restaurants and hotels, 7.3% (-0.2 points); alcoholic beverages and tobacco, 4.1% (-1.3 points); and other goods and services, 3.8% (-0.1 points).
On the other hand, the categories where prices saw the most significant year-on-year decrease were housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels, with a decrease of -5% (+5.2 points compared to the previous month); and clothing and footwear, -0.2% (+1.3 points), which were the only two categories with decreasing prices.
In Spain as a whole, the CPI increased by 0.3% in October compared to the previous month, and its year-on-year rate remained unchanged at 3.5%. This stability was achieved because the rise in electricity and gas prices was counterbalanced by lower fuel prices and a less intense increase in food prices compared to the previous year.
Food prices, in particular, moderated their year-on-year rate of increase by one percentage point, reaching 9.5 percent, falling below double digits for the first time in a year and a half. This was attributed to lower price increases in categories like vegetables, milk, eggs and cheese, meat, and fruit in October compared to the same month in 2022. In contrast, prices for oils and fats increased more than they did a year ago.
With inflation staying at 3.5 percent year-on-year in October, it marked the end of three consecutive months of rising prices following increases in July, August, and September of four, three, and nine-tenths of a percentage point, respectively. Nonetheless, the year-on-year CPI remained at its highest level since April of the previous year when it reached 4.1 percent.
Core inflation, which excludes unprocessed food and energy products, dropped by six-tenths in October to 5.2 percent, which is 1.7 points higher than the general CPI.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs emphasized in a statement that headline inflation remained stable in October “due to the better performance of foodstuffs and the fall in fuels.”
“The economic policy measures adopted by the government have allowed Spain to maintain one of the lowest inflation rates and highest economic growth rates in the euro area in the last year, which has favored greater competitiveness of Spanish companies and the gain in purchasing power of wages,” stated the department led by Nadia Calviño.
FOOD PRICES RISE BY 1.3% COMPARED TO SEPTEMBER
In monthly terms (October over September), the CPI recorded an increase of 0.3 percent, which was one-tenth of a percent higher than the previous month’s rise. With this increase, inflation has now risen for the fifth consecutive month.
The monthly increase in the CPI in October was driven by an 8.6 percent increase in clothing and footwear prices due to the new autumn-winter season, as well as a 1.3 percent increase in food prices due to “generalized” increases in most of its components, with notable price increases in oils, fruit, meat, and fish.
