Annual inflation in consumer prices increased for the second successive month in February, rising from 7.8% to 8.5%, according to the latest Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures.
It is the 17th straight month that inflation has exceeded 5%, with the largest annual price increases posted in housing, water, electricity, gas & other fuels (+26%) and food & non-alcoholic beverages (+13.1%).
Electricity (+62.7%), gas (+86.1%), liquid fuels (+17.3%) and solid fuels (+46.1%) in particular continue to drive inflation, while education (-6.3%) and miscellaneous goods & services (-0.1%) were the only divisions to see prices decreases year-on-year.
"The annual change in food & non-alcoholic beverages costs reflects a rise in prices across a range of products such as sugar (+30.8%), frozen fish (+26.9%), fresh whole milk (+26.8%), eggs (+22.9%), and butter (+22.2%)," said Anthony Dawson, statistician in the prices division at the CSO.
Consumer prices rose 1.6% month-on-month, and increased most significantly in clothing & footwear (+5.8%) and recreation & culture (+3.5%), while communications (-0.1%) saw the only decline.
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The CSO said the main factors for the monthly uptick in inflation were higher prices for alcoholic drinks and food consumed in restaurants and licensed premises, hotel accommodation, airfares, petrol, clothing, footwear as well as recreation and sporting services and package holidays. The CSO also published national price averages.
There were price increases for an 800g loaf of white sliced pan (+24c), an 800g loaf of brown sliced pan (+23c), 2 litres of full fat milk (+48c), and a pound of butter (+69c) when compared with February 2022..
"It looks like soaring costs are not set to end any time soon as the price of basic household essentials like milk, bread, butter as well as, fruit and vegetables have shot up in recent weeks," said Marian Ryan, consumer tax manager at Taxback.com.
"Families with several mouths to feed will be looking for ways to stretch their grocery shop opting for cheaper cuts of meat and bulking out meals with store cupboard staples such as beans and lentils which are much more cost-effective.
"The hospitality sector was also set to feel the pinch of the increased VAT rate this month but the further extension of the lowered VAT rate of 9% until the end of August might be enough to see those struggling over the inflation hump."
Eurostat's EU Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) for Ireland measured inflation at 8% in February.
(Pic: Getty Images)
