VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta’s annual inflation rate declined in September, contrasting with an upward trend across the European Union, according to data from Eurostat and the National Statistics Office.
Figures compiled through the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) show Malta’s inflation stood at 2.4%, down from 2.7% in August. Across the EU, inflation increased from 2.4% to 2.6%, while the euro area average rose from 2% to 2.2%.
This means Malta’s rate now sits below the EU average but remains slightly above the euro area mean.
The highest inflation levels were recorded in Romania (8.6%), Estonia (5.3%), and Croatia and Slovakia (4.6%), while Cyprus (0%), France (1.1%), and Italy and Greece (1.8%) registered the lowest.
Inflation fell in eight member states, including Malta, was stable in four, and rose in fifteen.
The NSO said the main upward pressures came from restaurants and hotels (0.66 percentage points), followed by food and non-alcoholic beverages (0.61pp), and miscellaneous goods and services (0.28pp).
The HICP tracks consumer prices across 12 categories but notably excludes owner-occupied housing, a sector that has seen sharp price rises in Malta.
– Photo IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).
