Spanish inflation unexpectedly accelerated in February on higher electricity and food costs, surprising to the upside for a second month even after the government cut taxes on key staples.
(Bloomberg) — Spanish inflation unexpectedly accelerated in February on higher electricity and food costs, surprising to the upside for a second month even after the government cut taxes on key staples.
Consumer prices advanced 6.1% from a year ago — up from 5.9% in January — the statistics institute in Madrid said Tuesday. Economists in a Bloomberg survey had predicted that there’d be a slowdown to 5.7%.
A measure of underlying inflation that excludes energy and fresh food reached an all-time high of 7.7%.
The pick-up underscores the challenge for the euro zone’s fourth-largest economy in taming inflation that had eased by more than five percentage points since the summer. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s government will come under more pressure to keep a lid on prices in an election year in which he’s widely expected to seek another term.
–With assistance from Ainhoa Goyeneche.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.