France’s annual inflation rate rose to 2.4% in August 2026, up from 2.1% in July, in line with preliminary estimates. This was the highest rate in three months and was driven largely by a sharp increase in energy inflation, which climbed to 16.7% from 12.6% in July, particularly due to higher petroleum product prices.
Food inflation inched up to 1.1% from 1.0%, while the decline in prices of manufactured goods moderated, with prices falling 0.4% after a 0.7% drop in July. By contrast, services inflation eased to 1.9% from 2.2%, and tobacco inflation was unchanged at 3.3%.
On a monthly basis, consumer prices increased by 0.7% in August, following a 0.6% rise in July. This monthly gain reflected the seasonal rebound in manufactured goods prices after the summer sales, along with higher energy and food prices. Annual core inflation, which excludes volatile items such as energy and food, slowed to 1.1% from 1.3%.
Meanwhile, the EU-harmonised inflation rate (HICP) accelerated to 2.6% year-on-year from 2.4% in July, while the monthly HICP rate increased to 0.7% from 0.6%.
