Sweden’s annual inflation reaches 9.3% as food and fuel prices rise
Stockholm, November 16 (IANS): In October, large price increases in Sweden continued for products such as food, especially vegetables, and non-alcoholic beverages as the country’s 12-month CPIF (Consumer Price Index with fixed interest rate) inflation rate stood at 9.3 percent, down from 9.7 percent in September, according to official figures.
Statistics Sweden said on Tuesday that the country’s CPI (consumer price index) reached 10.9 percent in October as “increased interest costs contributed about 1.8 percentage points to the inflation rate,” Xinhua news agency reported
“Inflation according to CPI was higher than according to CPIF due to the increased interest rates on mortgages. This effect is eliminated from CPIF,” explained Caroline Neander, price statistician at Statistics Norway.
Fuel, electricity, food and non-alcoholic beverages were among the biggest contributors to the inflation rate in October.
These products were 32.7 percent, 25.6 percent and 17.2 percent more expensive, respectively, than in the same month a year ago.
In the category of food and non-alcoholic beverages, the price increases of meat, milk, eggs, cheese, bread and cereals were the most notable.
In general, food prices account for around 15 percent of Swedish household budgets.
But for low-income households, this percentage tends to be significantly higher, Dagens Nyheter reported.