Prices in Croatia Have Increased the Most Since Joining the EU

Inflation in the European Union and the Eurozone reached its highest level in two and a half years in May, and in Croatia, prices have increased the most since joining the EU, a report from Eurostat revealed on Thursday.

At the EU level, the annual inflation rate measured by the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) rose to 2.3 percent in May, the highest level since October 2018, according to the European statistical office. In April, it was 2.0 percent.

In the Eurozone, prices increased by two percent, also the highest since October 2018. In April, they rose by 1.6 percent.

In May last year, when economic activities and social life nearly came to a halt due to the suppression of the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation in the EU was 0.6 percent, and 0.1 percent in the area of the common European currency.

Data for the Eurozone show that last month, energy prices jumped the most, by 13.1 percent compared to May 2020. In April, they increased by just over 10 percent.

The share of energy in the inflation rate was calculated by Eurostat to be 1.19 percent.

Croatia Alongside Germany, Spain, and Sweden

Among EU countries, prices in Hungary rose the most in May on an annual basis, by 5.3 percent. Poland and Luxembourg followed with inflation rates of 4.6 and 4.0 percent, respectively.

Croatia is grouped with Germany, Spain, and Sweden, with an annual inflation rate measured by HICP of 2.4 percent, the highest since August 2013, according to Eurostat data. In April, it was 2.1 percent.

In May last year, prices in Croatia fell by 0.7 percent on an annual basis.

The mildest price increases last month were recorded in Portugal and Malta, at 0.5 and 0.2 percent, respectively, according to Eurostat’s report.

Only Greece recorded a decline in prices on an annual basis, by 1.2 percent.

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