Inflation Slowed to 3.6 Percent in February, Plenković Calls for Responsible Behavior

The Croatian Bureau of Statistics (DZS) has published the first estimate of the consumer price index, according to which the inflation rate in February 2025 was 3.6 percent compared to February 2024, while it was lower by 0.2 percent compared to the previous month, January 2025.

In October 2024, the multi-month trend of slowing price growth on an annual basis was interrupted, and after increases of 2.2 percent in October, 2.8 percent in November, 3.4 percent in December, and 4 percent in January of this year, the annual inflation rate returned to a downward trajectory in February.

According to the main components of the index, the estimated annual inflation rate for services is 5.7 percent, for the group including food, beverages, and tobacco 4.9 percent, for energy 3.4 percent, and for industrial non-food products excluding energy 0.2 percent, as stated in the DZS announcement.

On a monthly basis, compared to January 2025, the prices of food, beverages, and tobacco, as well as industrial non-food products excluding energy, fell by 0.4 percent each. Energy prices increased by 0.6 percent, while service prices remained on average at the same level.

The DZS announced that it will publish the final data on the consumer price index for February according to the ECOICOP classification (European Classification of Individual Consumption according to Purpose) on March 17.

According to the first estimate published today by Eurostat, the annual inflation rate in February measured by the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) in Croatia was 4.7 percent, with only Estonia having a higher rate at 5 percent. The annual inflation rate in the Eurozone measured by the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) was 2.4 percent in February, calculated by statisticians. In January, prices had increased by 2.5 percent.

Plenković Comments on New Data

Inflation has thus eased last month for the first time since September of last year, according to Eurostat data. Services saw the strongest price increase again, at 3.7 percent, slightly less than in January.

Fresh food prices increased by as much as 3.1 percent, the strongest since the beginning of last year and approximately twice as strong as in January. Energy prices remained at the level of February 2024. At the beginning of the year, they had increased by 1.9 percent, according to revised data from the European statistical office.

When excluding energy and fresh food, prices in February were 2.6 percent higher than a year ago. Data for January showed a core inflation rate of 2.7 percent. Monthly comparisons show a price increase in February of 0.5 percent. In January, prices had fallen by 0.3 percent. Energy prices decreased by 0.3 percent compared to January when they had surged by as much as 2.9 percent.

The strongest annual price increase in February was recorded in Estonia, at 5.0 percent, according to Eurostat data. Following Estonia were Croatia, Belgium, and Slovakia. The mildest price increase was recorded in France, at 0.9 percent, according to Eurostat data.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković commented on the new inflation data, observing the slowdown in inflation in February in the context of expanding the basket of price-controlled items, and calling on all market participants to engage in socially responsible behavior when setting prices to further reduce inflation.

– We subsidize the prices of electricity, gas, and fuel, and we have increased the number of price-controlled products to 70. We have introduced additional measures to protect consumers and continue to take care of citizens with the lowest incomes. We call on all market participants to engage in socially responsible behavior when setting prices with the aim of further reducing inflation – Plenković wrote on platform X. It is worth noting that the government, with a decision that came into effect on February 7, expanded the list of price-controlled products to 70, while the previous list established in September 2023 contained 30 items.