ROME, Mar 31 The rising cost of living in Italy continues and gets worse «Unbearable,» said the President of the National Union of Consumers (Unc) Massimiliano Dona, commenting on the latest official inflation data in the country.
According to preliminary estimates released on Friday by the National Institute of Statistics (Istat), inflation in March was 7.7% year on year. In February, this figure was 9.1%, which indicates a certain slowdown in price growth, caused primarily by lower energy tariffs. Over the past month, the consumer price index fell in the Apennines by 0.3%. However, Istat experts note that this positive trend has so far had little effect on food prices, which continue to rise rapidly.
“The reduction in inflation continues thanks to falling energy prices, but this is not enough. Tariff cuts, which also benefit industrial enterprises, have not yet affected the prices of all goods. In particular, this has not happened with regard to food and goods prices. consumer basket, which, as in February, increased by 13.2% and 12.7%, respectively,» Dona stressed.
According to him, prices in the country continue to rise, and quite quickly, and society needs them to fall to a level that would be acceptable for Italian families.
“The cost of living continues to rise and becomes more and more unbearable. For a couple with two children, inflation of 7.7% means an additional annual cost of 2,306 euros, of which 1,015 euros goes only for food and drinks, and 1,062 euros for consumer goods For a couple with one child, the additional costs are 2,114 euros… The record is always held by large families with more than three children – they have to bear the blow of 2,603 euros, of which 1,212 euros go only for food,» the head of Unc.
In early March, analyzing data from Istat, experts from the National Union of Consumers identified a trend in food savings, which is expressed in a reduction in the consumption of food products in Italy. When comparing data on food purchases, it turned out that in January 2023 in physical terms, they decreased by 3.3% compared to the same period in 2020 and by 6.3% compared to January 2021. «The Italians have never eaten so little. It can't be worse than now,» Dona summed up then.
Strong inflation causes the greatest concern of the absolute majority of Italians, according to the results of a public opinion survey released on Friday, conducted by the Euromedia Research Institute. According to this study, published in the newspaper La Stampa, the rapid rise in prices is considered the main problem of the country by 48.6% of respondents.