14 January 2015
2015- n° 8Consumer prices increased by 0.5% in average from 2013 to 2014 Price Index – Annual average rates of change - 2014
Inflation measured in terms of annual average of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was +0.5% in 2014 after +0.9% in 2013. Excluding tobacco, the annual average growth rate of the CPI was a little lower (+0.4% after +0.7% in 2013). This slowdown came mainly from a drop in energy prices, in manufactured products and in food prices. In contrast, driven upward by higher VAT rates, service prices have slightly accelerated. Lastly, tobacco prices remained dynamic in 2014.
Here are published annual average rates of change of the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) in 2014. The monthly and year-on-year rates of change of the CPI in December 2014 have been also published on 14th January. The annual averages and the year-on-year rates of change are different: the annual averages refer to the whole set of prices observed during one year compared to all those observed during the previous year. The year-on-year price changes refer to the prices observed during a particular month compared to those observed during the same month of the previous year.
Inflation measured in terms of annual average of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was +0.5% in 2014 after +0.9% in 2013. Excluding tobacco, the annual average growth rate of the CPI was a little lower (+0.4% after +0.7% in 2013). This slowdown came mainly from a drop in energy prices, in manufactured products and in food prices. In contrast, driven upward by higher VAT rates, service prices have slightly accelerated. Lastly, tobacco prices remained dynamic in 2014.
Food prices declined in 2014
In 2014, food prices were down 0.6% (after +1.4% in 2013) mainly due to a large fall in prices of fresh unprocessed products (—4.1% in average in 2014). Supply of these products have been stimulated throughout the year by favorable weather conditions. Falls of prices was steeper for fresh fruits (—5.8%) than for fresh vegetables (—4.7%). Excluding fresh foodstuffs, food prices remained broadly stable (—0.1% compared to 2013). However, trends diverged from one consumption group to another: only prices of cheese bounced back slightly (+1.7% after —0.8% in 2013) while meat prices (+0.9% after +2.8% in 2013) and those of alcoholic beverages (+1.7% after +3.2% in 2013) slowed down; prices of most of the other food products were on a downward trend.
tableauTableau1 – Annual average changes in consumer price index
| Annual average rates of change | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Items | weight 2014 | 2013 | 2014 | From 2013 to 2014 (%) |
| a) All households – France | ||||
| All items (00 E) | 10000 | 127.21 | 127.85 | 0.5 |
| FOOD (4000 E) | 1653 | 132.59 | 131.82 | –0.6 |
| Fresh foodstuffs (4001 E) | 210 | 143.94 | 138.08 | –4.1 |
| Food excluding fresh products (4002 E) | 1443 | 130.99 | 130.91 | –0.1 |
| TOBACCO (4034 E) | 204 | 245.43 | 258.30 | 5.2 |
| MANUFACTURED PRODUCTS (4003 E) | 2653 | 101.04 | 100.16 | –0.9 |
| Clothing and footwear (4004 E) | 438 | 107.50 | 107.48 | 0.0 |
| Medical products (4005 E) | 434 | 80.78 | 78.51 | –2.8 |
| Other manufactured products (4006 E) | 1781 | 104.48 | 103.84 | –0.6 |
| ENERY (4007 E) | 850 | 179.14 | 177.46 | –0.9 |
| Petroleum products (4008 E) | 475 | 207.89 | 199.06 | –4.2 |
| SERVICES (4009 E) | 4640 | 133.73 | 136.06 | 1.7 |
| Actual rentals and services for dwellings (4010 E) | 748 | 139.97 | 142.04 | 1.5 |
| Medical services (4011 E) | 552 | 121.90 | 122.26 | 0.3 |
| Transport and communication services (4012 E) | 503 | 95.34 | 96.37 | 1.1 |
| Other services (4013 E) | 2837 | 143.57 | 146.73 | 2.2 |
| All items excluding rentals and tobacco (5000 E) | 9202 | 124.83 | 125.29 | 0.4 |
| All items excluding energy (4017 E) | 9150 | 123.47 | 124.26 | 0.6 |
| All items excluding tobacco (4018 E) | 9796 | 125.43 | 125.94 | 0.4 |
| b) Urban households headed by a manual or a clerical worker – France | ||||
| All. items excluding tobacco (4018 D) | 9707 | 125.23 | 125.73 | 0.4 |
| ALL ITEMS (00 D) | 10000 | 127.83 | 128.53 | 0.5 |
- Source: INSEE – Consumer Price indexes
Overall decline in energy prices
Energy prices went down by 0.9% in 2014 (after +0.8% in 2013). Again, prices of petroleum products decreased strongly in 2014 (—4.2% after —2.3% in 2013) following the fall of oil prices in the second half of 2014. Overall, prices of heating fuels fell by 6.7% in average in 2014 (after —3.1% in 2013) while those of motor fuels, more taxed, decreased by 4.0% (after —2.5% in 2013). Furthermore, town gas prices declined slightly in 2014 (—0.6% after +3.9% in 2013). On the opposite, electricity prices continued to rise at a rapid pace (+5.7% after +6.5% in 2013).
Prices of dwelling services slowed down
In 2014, the prices of dwelling services (actual rentals and other services connected with dwellings) slowed down again (+1.5% after +1.8% in 2013 and +2.0% in 2012). Actual rentals, which are revalued in line with past evolutions of inflation, slackened in 2014 (+1.0% after +1.6 in 2013), following the general disinflation process. Furthermore, the tariffs of insurances connected to dwellings decelerated in 2014 (+3.2% after +6.4% in 2013). On the opposite, the prices of other services connected with dwellings (water supply and miscellaneous excluding energy) were driven upward by the increase of the VAT rates in January 2014. Thus, they accelerated in 2014 (+2.7% after +1.8% in 2013). The same applied to maintenance and repair of dwelling services which sped up in 2014 (+3.3% after +2.0% in 2013).
Health prices shrank again
In 2014, the decrease in health prices has continued at the same pace than in 2013 (—1.1% in average) as a consequence of a new drop in prices of medical products and equipments (—2.8% after —3.4% in 2013). Medical service prices slowed down (+0.3% after +0.8% in 2013). In 2014, doctor fees (+0.2% in 2014 after +0.1%) and prices of dental services (+1.1% after +0.9% in 2013) grew pratically at the same pace in 2014 than in 2013. Prices of paramedical services were almost stable in 2014 since some of them were revalued in late 2012 and in early 2013. Moreover, the charges for health insurance sped up in 2014 (+3.0% after +1.4% in 2013).
Communication prices continued to decrease
After a fall of 9.6% in 2013, communication service prices diminished by 0.6% overall in 2014. Fees of telecommunication services remained broadly unchanged in 2014 (—0.1% after —10.4% in 2013). Furthermore, tariffs of postal services accelerated (+4.1% after +3.4% in 2013). On the opposite, drop in prices of telephone and fax equipments strengthened (—15.0% after —12.6% in 2013).
Prices of other manufactured products decreased
Overall, prices of the other manufactured products decreased by 0.6% in 2014 after they had remained almost stable in 2013 (+0.1%). Prices of audiovisual, photographic and information processing equipments (—7.2%) and those of household appliances (—2.2%) dropped in 2014 at a pace close to those observed in 2013 (—7.5% and —2.2% respectively). In addition, the prices of some other product groups also decreased in 2014: household textiles by —0.4% (after +3.5% in 2013), glassware, tableware and household utensils by —0.5% (after +0.5% in 2013) and personal effects by —1.0% (after +2.0% in 2013). Moreover, clothing and footwear prices were broadly stable in 2014 after an increase by 0.9% in 2013.
Prices of other service grew at the same pace than in 2013
Prices of the other services grew at pratically the same pace in 2014 (+2.2%) than in 2013 (+2.1%) despite the introduction of higher VAT rates in January 2014. However, some prices significantly accelerated in 2014: those of restaurants and hotels (+2.8% in 2014 after +2.2% in 2013), those of financial services (+2.4% after +1.7% in 2013) and those of transport services (+1.8% after +0.9% in 2013).
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