In June, France experienced the slowest consumer price inflation in almost three years, primarily driven by reduced costs for food and energy, according to a provisional estimate from the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE).
A separate official report highlighted that producer prices dropped for the sixth consecutive month in May.
The consumer price index increased by 2.1 percent year-over-year in June, following a 2.3 percent rise in May. This marks the lowest inflation rate since August 2021, when prices had grown by 1.9 percent.
INSEE attributed this minor decline in inflation mainly to the deceleration in food and energy prices. Specifically, annual energy price growth slowed to 4.8 percent in June from 5.7 percent in May, while food inflation decreased to 0.8 percent from 1.3 percent. Prices for manufactured products remained unchanged.
On a monthly basis, consumer prices saw a slight uptick of 0.1 percent in June, after remaining stagnant in May.
EU-harmonised inflation also showed a slight decrease, easing to 2.5 percent in June from 2.6 percent in the previous month. Monthly, the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) rose consistently by 0.1 percent.
In a separate report, INSEE revealed that industrial producer prices in the domestic market fell by 1.4 percent month-on-month in May, a slower decline compared to April's 3.6 percent drop.
The April downturn was largely driven by a 4.5 percent decrease in prices for mining, energy, and water products. The prices of manufactured products fell by 0.3 percent, influenced by an 8.0 percent drop in refined petroleum product prices.
On an annual basis, May's producer prices fell by 6.7 percent, mirroring April's decline.
Producer prices in the foreign market decreased by 1.0 percent annually in May. The overall producer price index declined at a faster annual rate of 5.4 percent, compared to a 5.1 percent fall in the prior month.
