BERLIN (Reuters) – German inflation looks likely to stabilize around 7.6% in April, based on regional data from five states and in line with analyst forecasts for federal data due to be published later Thursday.
Preliminary data from Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, Hesse and Baden-Wuerttemberg showed annual consumer price inflation (CPI) in a range between 7.0% and 7.9%.
In March, the EU-harmonized inflation figure (HICP) was 7.6% and the annual CPI rate was 7.3%.
A Reuters poll of analysts pointed to an overall annual HICP reading of 7.6% in April, while the CPI rate is seen as 7.2%.
Energy prices have been pushing up costs, with March producer prices – the first month to reflect the war in Ukraine – seeing the biggest year-on-year jump since records started in 1949, spelling bad news for consumer inflation.
The German government sees an inflation rate of 6.1% in 2022 and 2.8% next year, citing the effects of energy prices in Europe’s biggest economy, the economy ministry said on Wednesday.
(Reporting by Miranda Murray; Editing by Paul Carrel)
