Consumer price indices - inflation - December 2020

Consumer prices in December decreased by 0.2% compared with November. This development came primarily from price decline in 'food and non-alcoholic beverages'. The year-on-year growth of consumer prices amounted to 2.3% in December, which was 0.4 percentage points down on November. It was the lowest year-on-year price growth since December 2018. The average inflation rate for 2020 as a whole was 3.2%.
 

Month-on-month comparison

Price decrease in 'food and non-alcoholic beverages' came mainly from lower prices of vegetables by 9.4%. Prices of yoghurts went down by 5.8%, pork by 1.3%, eggs by 3.5%, cheese and curd by 0.8%. In 'clothing and footwear', prices of garments were lower by 1.8%.

Month-on-month increase in the overall consumer price level in December came from price rise in 'alcoholic beverages, tobacco’, where prices of tobacco products were higher by 1.5% and spirits by 0.9%. In 'transport', prices of automotive fuels and lubricants increased by 0.9%. In food, mainly prices of potatoes were higher by 5.0% and UHT semi-skimmed milk by 2.5%.

Prices of goods in total went down by 0.4%, whereas prices of services went up by 0.2%.
 

Year-on-year comparison

Consumer prices increased by 2.3% in December, i.e. 0.4 percentage points down on November. This slowdown in the year-on-year price growth came mainly from prices in 'food and non-alcoholic beverages'. Prices of vegetables turned from growth by 6.8% in November into decline by 7.2% in December, prices of pork were lower by 6.8% (decrease by 2.6% in November), eggs by 5.2% (decrease by 1.2% in November), sugar by 1.8% (decrease by 0.6% in November). In 'clothing and footwear’, prise rise of garments slowed down to 2.4% (4.3% in November). Deceleration of year-on-year price rise occurred in 'housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels', due to prices of electricity, which were higher by 2.5% in December (3.3% in November). In 'alcoholic beverages and tobacco' price rise of spirits accelerated to 5.4% (3.3% in November) and tobacco products to 16.4% (14.8% in November).

The biggest influence on the growth of the year-on-year price level in December came, as before, from prices in 'alcoholic beverages and tobacco' (increase by 10.7%). Next in order of influence were prices in 'housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels’, where prices of actual rentals were higher by 2.0%, water supply by 1.7%, sewage collection by 1.5%. Prices of natural gas were lower by 3.9%, year-on-year. In 'restaurants and hotels', prices of catering services increased by 4.7%. A reduction in the overall price level in December came from prices in 'food and non-alcoholic beverages' (decrease by 0.1%) and 'communications' (decrease by 1.2%).

Prices of goods in total and services went up (2.0% and 2.8%, respectively). The overall consumer price index excluding imputed rentals for housing was 102.4%, year-on-year.

The average inflation rate as measured by the increase in the average consumer price index in the twelve months 2020 compared with the average CPI in the twelve months 2019 was 3.2%, i.e. 0.4 percentage points up on 2019. It was the highest average inflation rate since 2012. Prices of goods in total and prices of services rose identically by 3.2%

(A summary of the development of the consumer price index in 2020 is a part of the Q4 analysis, which is released at the same time.)
 

Harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) ¹⁾

According to preliminary calculations, the HICP in the Czech Republic in December went down by 0.2%, month-on-month and went up by 2.4%, year-on-year. According to flash estimates of Eurostat, the MUICP (Monetary Union Index of Consumer Prices) in December 2020 amounted to −0.3% year-on-year (as in November). In Slovakia, prices were higher by 1.6% in December and on the other hand in Germany, prices were lower by 0.7%. According to preliminary data of Eurostat, the year-on-year change in the average harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) in the EU27 member states amounted to 0.2% in November (as in October). The rise in prices was the highest in Poland (3.7%) and the deepest price reduction occurred in Greece (−2.1%). In Slovakia, prices were higher by 1.6% and in Germany prices decreased by 0.7%.

(More information on the Eurostat’s web pages: HICP.)
 

Methodological note to consumer price index in December 2020 (COVID-19)
 

¹⁾ Imputed rentals are excluded from the HICP.

Notes:
Responsible manager of the CZSO: Jiri Mrazek, Director of Price Statistics Department, email: jiri.mrazek@csu.gov.cz
Contact: Pavla Sediva, Head of the Consumer Price Statistics Unit, phone (+420) 274052138, email: pavla.sediva@csu.gov.cz
Data source: Direct field survey of prices, centrally surveyed prices and reporting
End of data collection: 20th day of the reference month / End of data processing: 3rd day of the month that follows the reference month
Related publications: 012018-20 Consumer Price Indices – Basic Breakdown (periodicity: monthly), 012023-20 Consumer price Indices – Detailed Breakdown (periodicity: monthly) and 012019-20 Consumer Price Indices – Detailed Breakdown (periodicity: annually)
Internet: https://csu.gov.cz/inflation-consumer-prices
Next News Release: 12 February 2021
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