Inflation remains high at 4 percent in September

Inflation (CPI) in Austria remained at a high level of 4.0 percent in September. According to a quick estimate by Statistics Austria, the inflation rate decreased only slightly from 4.1 percent in August. The strongest price driver was again the service sector, with a price increase of 4.7 percent. Prices in Austria have been rising more sharply than in the Eurozone for some time, for which the ECB aims for an inflation rate of just under 2.0 percent.

Inflation in September slightly decreased to 4.0 percent

One reason for the higher inflation this year is the energy subsidies that the federal government abolished at the beginning of the year. According to Statistics Austria, energy cost 7.9 percent more in September than a year ago, after 5.9 percent in August, mainly because fuels no longer had a price-dampening effect, as Manuela Lenk, Director General of Statistics Austria, explained in a statement.

Inflation in Austria stronger than in the Eurozone

The EU-wide harmonized consumer price index (HICP) rose by 3.9 percent according to preliminary figures - 1.7 percentage points above the Eurozone inflation, which according to Eurostat was 2.2 percent in September. Inflation in September was higher than in Austria only in Slovakia, Croatia, and the two Baltic states of Estonia and Latvia. In Germany, the inflation rate was 2.4 percent, and in France only 1.1 percent.

Analysts from Erste Group stated on Wednesday that they expect inflation (HICP) in Austria to be 3.4 percent for the entire year 2025 and to decrease to 2.0 percent in 2026.

Government points to measures against inflation

The governing parties ÖVP, SPÖ, and NEOS pointed to the measures decided and planned against inflation. However: "Everyone knows that there is not a single button you can press, and tomorrow the inflation will be lower," said Minister of Economic Affairs Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer (ÖVP) after the Council of Ministers on Wednesday. SPÖ parliamentary group leader Philip Kucher stated that inflation must fall below 2 percent by 2026. "If our measures are not enough, we will provide further measures," said Kucher. NEOS leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger said: "An inflation of four percent is of course not acceptable," but emphasized that they "inherited a heavy legacy" from the previous government.

The economically liberal think tank Agenda Austria saw its warning against price interventions confirmed. "When interventions like the electricity price brake expire, prices rise," explained Agenda Austria economist Hanno Lorenz. The trade union federation (ÖGB) is convinced of the opposite: A crisis mechanism that allows for price interventions in electricity and gas should not be postponed any longer, demanded Federal Managing Director Helene Schuberth.

(APA/Red)

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