15 May 2020

2020- n° 121

In April 2020, consumer prices were stable over one month and increased by 0.3% year on year Consumer price index - final results - April 2020

In April 2020, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was stable over a month, after +0.1% in the previous month. The drop in energy prices (−4.2% after −3.9%) was offset by the rebound in those of food prices (+1.8% after −0.1%). After a 0.2% drop in March, service prices were stable in April.

Those of manufactured products were unchanged too, after +1.4% in March. Finally, tobacco prices were stable over a month.

Seasonally adjusted, consumer prices fell by 0.1% in April, after −0.6% in March.

Year on year, consumer prices slowed down for the third consecutive month, to +0.3%, after +0.7% in March. The sharp drop in inflation came from an accentuation of the drop in the prices of energy and manufactured products and a slowdown in service and tobacco prices. Contrariwise, food prices gathered pace year on year.

Year on year, core inflation sharply fell in April: +0.3% after +0.7% in the previous month. The Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) was stable over a month, after +0.1% in March; year on year, it slowed down for the third consecutive month, to +0.4%, after +0.8% in the previous month.

Year on year, energy prices fell by 8.6% in April, after a 4.0% downturn in March. It has been their sharpest drop since October 2009. Petroleum product prices collapsed, to −17.0% year on year, after −8.8% in March: over a month, they decreased by 7.4% after −6.5% in the previous month, due to the sharp drop in Brent prices since the beginning of the Covid-19 epidemic. The change in gas prices dropped more too: −13.2% year on year, after −12.1% in March. Electricity prices rose by 9.7% year on year, as in the two previous months.

In April 2020, food prices were far more dynamic than in the previous month: + 3.7% year on year after +1.9%. The prices of fresh produces were sharply higher (+17.8% year on year after +4.7%). Those of fresh vegetables soared to +30.3% year on year after +4.8% and those of the other fresh products markedly rose too: + 10.8% year on year for the fresh fruits prices after +5.1%, +19.0% for those of fresh fish after +6.4%.

Excluding fresh produces, food prices rose by 1.4% year on year, as in the previous month. The prices of rice (−0.3% year on year after −0.1%) and flours and other cereals (−1.6% after −0.5%) dropped more and those of oils and fats (−0.3% after +0.4%) and non alcoholic beverages (−0.3% after +0.1%) fell back. The prices of milk, cheese and eggs slowed down (+0.1% after +1.0%), as those of alcoholic beverages (+0.5% year on year after +1.3%). Contrariwise, the prices of pasta products and couscous (−0.1% after −0.6%) and sugar (−0.3% after −0.9%) dropped less than in March. Those of meat (+3.9% after +3.6%), baby food (+1.7% after +1.0%) and dried vegetables, other preserved or processed vegetables (+1.7% after +1.6%) gathered pace.

Year on year, manufactured product prices dropped by 0.5%, after −0.4% in the previous month. Clothing and footwear prices fell back by 0.9% year on year after +0.1% in March. The prices of “other manufactured products” were stable year on year, after −0.1% in the previous month. The prices of the articles for personal hygiene, wellness and beauty products dropped more (−1.3% year on year after −0.5%). Those of cleaning products (−0.9% year on year −1.7%), of small electric household appliances (−1.8% year on year −3.6%) and of information processing equipment (−1.1% year on year −2.6%) dropped less than in March and those of games, toys and hobbies (+1.2% after −1.6%) rebounded. Finally, health product prices dropped by 2.4% year on year, as in March.

Year on year, service prices sharply slowed down in April: +0.6% after +1.1%. Communication service prices fell back (−1.0% year on year after +2.0%). The prices of housing-related services were a little less dynamic (+0.3% year on year after +0.5%). Health service prices rose by 0.4% year on year, after +0.3% in the previous month. Strongly affected by the lockdown measures, transport services prices fell more (−6.0% year on year after −1.0%), in the wake of airfares (−12.6% after −4.4%). The prices of “other services”, whose consumption has been severely limited by the lockdown measures, barely slowed down to +1.4% year on year, after +1.5%.

Compared with the provisional estimates published on April 30, 2020, the month-on-month and year-on-year changes in the CPI and in the HICP were down by 0.1points.