Olive oil skyrocketed in price by 70% in the last year, it is 3.2% more expensive than in February and it already costs three times as much as in 2021

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.8% in March compared to the previous month and raised its interannual rate four tenths, up to 3.2%, due to the rise in electricity prices due to the increase in VAT on electricity , fuel and tourist packages, which increased their prices coinciding with the celebration of Holy Week, according to the final data published this Friday by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), which confirms those advanced at the end of last month.

For its part, the price of food and non-alcoholic beverages moderated its year-on-year increase in March to 4.3%, one point less than in February and its smallest increase since November 2021, due, for the most part, to the decline of the prices of legumes and vegetables and other food products. The rise in meat prices, lower than in March 2023, also had an influence.

Faced with the moderation in the food group, the housing group increased its annual rate by 4.2 points, up to 1.5%, due to the increase in electricity prices; That of transportation raised its interannual rate half a point, to 2.9%, as a result of the increase in fuel prices for personal vehicles; and leisure and culture registered an increase of one point in its annual rate, up to 3.8%, due to the higher cost of tourist packages.

With the increase in the interannual CPI in the third month of the year, inflation once again registered increases after the decline of six tenths that it experienced in February and which took inflation to 2.8%, its lowest level since August 2023.

The rebound in March also returns the CPI to rates above 3% after having fallen below that level in February, when it had then been above that percentage for five consecutive months.

The Ministry of Economy has highlighted in an assessment sent to the media that the "slight" increase in the CPI in March was fundamentally due to the normalization of the VAT on electricity after almost three years of applying the reduced VAT.

Likewise, the Department led by Carlos Body has especially highlighted the moderation of food prices, whose rate has been reduced by more than 12 points in the last year.

"Inflation data continue to reflect the capacity of the Spanish economy to reconcile the greatest economic growth among the main countries in the euro zone with a moderation in prices and the maintenance of support for the most vulnerable. The purchasing power of the families and the competitiveness of Spanish companies," said Economía.

Core inflation (without unprocessed food or energy products) fell two tenths in March, to 3.3%, a rate one tenth higher than that of the general CPI and the lowest since February 2022. The difference between the underlying and the General inflation, of one tenth, is the lowest since November 2022.

THE PRICE OF OLIVE OIL SHOOTS BY 70% IN THE LAST YEAR

In an interannual rate (March 2024 compared to the same month in 2023), what has risen the most in price is olive oil (70%), which has accumulated a rise of 200.4% since January 2021, which means that Its cost has tripled in the last three years.

In March, the year-on-year price increases for maritime passenger transport also stood out (23.8%); national tourist packages (23.4%); fruit and vegetable juices (16.9%), and television channel subscription fees (16.8%).

On the other hand, what became cheaper in the third month of the year compared to March 2023 were other oils (-22.4%); natural gas (-20.2%); mobile telephone equipment (-10.6%); legumes and vegetables (-9.2%) and personal computers (-8%).

Without taking into account the reductions and variations in taxes, the interannual CPI reached 2.7% in March, five tenths below the general rate of 3.2%. This is reflected in the CPI at constant taxes that the INE also publishes within the framework of this statistic.

In the third month of the year, the Harmonized Consumer Price Index (IPCA) placed its interannual rate at 3.3%, four tenths more than in February. For its part, the monthly variation of the IPCA was 1.4%.

THE CPI RISE BY 0.8% MONTHLY, WITH OLIVE OIL 3.2% MORE EXPENSIVE

In monthly terms (March over February), the CPI increased 0.8%, its largest monthly rise since February 2023, after increasing the prices of electricity, gasoline, accommodation services, restaurants, tourist packages and clothing and footwear for the new spring-summer season.

Coinciding with the celebration of Holy Week, what increased in price the most in the month of March compared to the previous month were national tourist packages (9.5%), international tourist packages (9.3%) and hotels ( 7.3%). Olive oil became more expensive by 3.2% in March compared to the previous month.

On the other hand, according to Statistics data, what became cheaper during the month was passenger transportation by metro (-14.2%).