Germany’s inflation picks up in May

FRANKFURT - Agence France-Presse

The cost of living in Germany increased by 1.5 percent on a 12-month basis in May. REUTERS photo

Inflation in Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, picked up in May from the two-and-a-half year low it had reached the previous month, official data showed yesterday.

The cost of living in Germany increased by 1.5 percent on a 12-month basis last month, up from 1.2 percent in April, the federal statistics office Destatis calculated in final data.

On a monthly basis, the consumer price index (CPI) rose by 0.4 percent in May from April. The final data confirmed a preliminary estimate released at the end of last month.

Using the Harmonised

Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), the ECB’s inflation yardstick, the rate of inflation in Germany also accelerated to 1.6 percent in May from 1.1 percent in April, Destatis said.

The ECB defines price stability as increases in HICP of close to but just below 2.0 percent.