ROME, ITALY / RankWire.AI / – Italy’s annual consumer inflation rate declined to 2.9% in July 2026 from 3.0% in June. According to final national data released on Aug. 12, consumer prices increased by 0.3% compared to June. Initial data at the end of July indicated an annual rate of 2.8%. Consequently, the official figure was 0.1 percentage points higher than the preliminary estimate. This marks a second consecutive month of easing in the annual inflation rate, which peaked at 3.2% in May.
Istat explained that the moderation in annual inflation was partly due to slower price rises in non-regulated energy, unprocessed foods, and miscellaneous services. Specifically, non-regulated energy inflation slowed from 13.3% to 11.4%. Unprocessed food prices increased by 3.6%, down from 4.4%. Meanwhile, inflation for miscellaneous services decreased to 1.8% from 2.5%. These declines offset rising inflation in regulated energy and various service sectors.
Regulated energy costs surged by 14.8% year over year, up from 9.2% in June. Transport-related services saw a 1.6% increase, compared to 1.1%. Recreation, repair, and personal care services rose by 3.0%, slightly higher than June’s 2.7%. Goods inflation edged down to 3.2% from 3.3%, whereas services inflation grew slightly to 2.7% from 2.6%. Core inflation, excluding energy and unprocessed food, remained steady at 1.6% for a second month.
Energy and Food Price Fluctuations Drive July Inflation Changes
On a monthly basis, price movements across categories reflected similar patterns. Regulated energy costs increased by 6.5% from June, while transport-related services grew by 1.4%. Recreation, repair, and personal care services experienced a 0.6% rise, and non-regulated energy prices increased by 0.5%. Processed foods, including alcohol and housing services, each went up by 0.3%. Conversely, unprocessed food prices declined by 1.3% compared to June. Overall, these shifts resulted in the national index being 0.3% higher than in June.
Looking at broader expenditure categories, housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels rose by 7.2% from July 2025. Transport prices increased by 4.3%, while restaurant and accommodation services grew by 3.4%. Food and non-alcoholic beverages saw a 1.4% rise, with clothing and footwear increasing by 0.9%. The index excluding energy rose by 1.8% year over year, slightly below June’s 1.9%. The combined grocery and unprocessed food segment increased by 1.0%, easing from 1.3% in the previous month.
The harmonised index aligns with euro area inflation at 2.9%
Italy’s harmonised consumer price index grew by 2.9% in July compared to the same month last year, down from 3.0% in June. The harmonised figure decreased by 1.0% from June due to seasonal sales impacting the measure but not the national index. This annual rate matched the preliminary harmonised estimate. Eurostat reported that euro area inflation reached 2.9% in its July flash estimate, up from 2.8% in June. Italy’s harmonised yearly inflation rate therefore matched the preliminary figure for the euro currency bloc.
The final national index reached 103.4 in July, based on 2025 as the index’s 100 reference year. The month’s data reflected a combination of slower gains in some categories—such as non-regulated energy, unprocessed foods, and miscellaneous services—and faster increases in others, like regulated energy and transport services. Both the national and harmonised measures recorded an inflation rate of 2.9% annually. Their monthly differences stem from seasonal sales impacting the harmonised index but not the national measure.