Energy prices drive up Italian inflation to 11.8 pct in October

ROME, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- Consumer prices in Italy rose by 11.8 percent in October compared to a year earlier, the government's statistics entity reported Wednesday. Energy-related impacts continued to play an oversized role.

According to the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), the final data for the consumer price index in October is lower than the 11.9-percent estimate released last month.

However, it is still a record since Italy's adoption of the euro currency in 1999. The last time prices rose so sharply in one month was in June 1983, when inflation hit 13 percent during a period when Italy was still using the lira currency.

In September this year, prices were 8.9 percent higher than a year earlier.

Soaring energy prices continue to drive up other prices, ISTAT said, with prices for energy goods increasing by 71.1 percent in October compared to a year earlier. In September, the year-on-year increase was 44.5 percent.

Food prices, which are influenced due to costs for transportation, mechanization, and fertilizer, also rose dramatically, increasing by 13.3 percent compared to October 2021. This was faster than the 11.4-percent increase recorded in September.

ISTAT said that the country's "core" inflation rate -- a calculation that excludes energy and food costs -- still came in at 5.3 percent in October, an increase from 5 percent a year earlier.

Over the first ten months of the year, prices rose by 8 percent, ISTAT said, while the "core" rate increased by 3.7 percent over the same period.