(ANSA-AFP) - FRANKFURT AM MAIN, JUL 29 - German consumer
prices accelerated at a faster-than-expected pace of 3.8 percent
in July, preliminary data showed Thursday, breaching the
three-percent mark for the first time since 2008. The last time
inflation in Europe's top economy ran higher was in December
1993 (4.3 percent). The federal statistics agency Destatis
blamed the year-on-year inflation hike in July mainly on higher
energy prices and the full base effect from a six-month sales
tax cut in 2020 showing up in the data for the first time. The
VAT cut was introduced by Chancellor Angela Merkel's government
to help mitigate the impact from the coronavirus shutdowns.
Analysts had expected a slightly smaller jump in the July figure
but consumer prices worldwide have been rising steadily in
recent months, fuelled by one-off effects linked to the
pandemic. (ANSA-AFP).
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