The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 8.7% in the year to August 2022 down from an annual increase of 9.1% in the year to July 2022
This is the eleventh straight month where the annual increase for the CPI has been at least 5.0%
The divisions with the largest increases in the year to August were Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+20.3%) and Transport (+14.8%)
Education (-0.7%) and Miscellaneous Goods & Services (-0.5%) were the only divisions to show a decrease when compared with August 2021
Consumer prices rose by 0.2% in the month between July 2022 and August 2022
The divisions with the largest increases in the month were Health (+1.3%), Clothing & Footwear (+1.1%) and Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+1.0%) while the only decrease in the month was seen in Transport (-2.0%)
This is an audio file with a 34-second quote from CSO statistician with the Prices Division, Anthony Dawson, about the August 2022 Consumer Price Index release.
Media outlets have permission to use the clip as long as they credit the CSO.
Figure 1 shows the development of the CPI and HICP over recent months. It also shows the recent divergence of the CPI and HICP. This divergence is due to some items having different weights in the respective indices.
| CPI and HICP | |||||||
| CPI | HICP | ||||||
| % monthly change | % annual change | % monthly change | % annual change | ||||
| Apr 2022 | 0.9 | 7.0 | 0.9 | 7.3 | |||
| May 2022 | 0.9 | 7.8 | 1.1 | 8.3 | |||
| Jun 2022 | 1.3 | 9.1 | 1.3 | 9.6 | |||
| Jul 2022 | 0.4 | 9.1 | 0.4 | 9.6 | |||
| Aug 2022 | 0.2 | 8.7 | 0.2 | 9.0 | |||
| X-axis label | CPI | HICP |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 2021 | 2.8 | 3 |
| Sep 2021 | 3.7 | 3.8 |
| Oct 2021 | 5.1 | 5.1 |
| Nov 2021 | 5.3 | 5.4 |
| Dec 2021 | 5.5 | 5.7 |
| Jan 2022 | 5 | 5 |
| Feb 2022 | 5.6 | 5.7 |
| Mar 2022 | 6.7 | 6.9 |
| Apr 2022 | 7 | 7.3 |
| May 2022 | 7.8 | 8.3 |
| Jun 2022 | 9.1 | 9.6 |
| Jul 2022 | 9.1 | 9.6 |
| Aug 2022 | 8.7 | 9.0 |
Prices on average, as measured by the CPI, were 8.7% higher in August 2022 compared with August 2021.
The most notable changes in the year were increases in Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+20.3%), Transport (+14.8%), Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+8.8%) and Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+8.0%). There were decreases in Education (-0.7%) and Miscellaneous Goods & Services (-0.5%).
Consumer Prices in August, as measured by the CPI, increased by 0.2% in the month. During August of last year, prices rose by 0.6% in the month. The most significant monthly price changes were increases in Health (+1.3%) and Clothing & Footwear (+1.1%). There was a decrease in Transport (-2.0%).
Table 3 shows the contribution of each 2-digit COICOP1 division to the overall change in the CPI. A detailed breakdown of the individual components of each of the 12 COICOP divisions is presented in Table 5.
The divisions which caused the largest upward contribution to the CPI in the year were Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+3.27%), Transport (+2.02%), Restaurants & Hotels (+1.15%) and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+1.03%).
The division which caused the largest downward contribution to the CPI in the year was Miscellaneous Goods & Services (-0.06%).
The main factors contributing to the annual change were as follows:
The divisions which caused the largest upward contribution to the CPI in the month were Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+0.18%) and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+0.07%). The only division which caused a downward contribution in the month was Transport (-0.29%).
The main factors contributing to the monthly change were as follows:
Table 4 details selected consumer price index sub-indices. The sub index for Services rose by 7.6% in the year to August, while Goods increased by 10.0%. Services, excluding mortgage interest repayments, increased by 7.6% in the year since August 2021.
The CPI excluding tobacco increased by 0.2% in the month of August and rose by 8.6% in the year. The CPI excluding mortgage interest also increased by 0.2% in the month and by 8.7% in the year.
Table 5 details all COICOP1 sub-indices of the CPI. This table represents data formerly provided in Tables 4 to 15 of the release.
1Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose Adapted to the Needs of Harmonised Indices of Consumer Prices (2000).
Prices on average, as measured by the EU Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), increased by 9.0% compared with August 2021.
Table 7 details the COICOP sub-indices for the HICP. The most notable changes in the year were increases in Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+24.4%), Transport (+15.2%), Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+8.7%) and Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+8.0%). There was a decrease in Education (-0.8%).
The HICP increased by 0.2% in the month. This compares to an increase of 0.7% recorded in August of last year.
The most significant monthly price changes were increases in Clothing & Footwear (+1.1%) and Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+1.0%). There were decreases in Transport (-1.9%) and Miscellaneous Goods & Services (-0.1%).
National Average Prices for selected goods and services for July 2022 are detailed in table 8.
It should be noted that due to the methodology used to calculated National Average Prices, the data lags one month behind the CPI data. Therefore, the latest available data for National Average Prices is for July 2022.
Looking at the National Average Prices of some staple items:
Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (08 September 2022) published the Consumer Price Index August 2022.
Commenting on the release, Anthony Dawson, Statistician in the Prices Division, said: “The latest publication for the Consumer Price Index (CPI) shows that prices for consumer goods and services in August 2022 increased by 8.7% on average compared to August 2021. This follows an increase of 9.1% in the year to July 2022. Prices have been rising on an annual basis since April 2021, with annual inflation of 5.0% or more recorded in each month since October 2021.
Annual Changes
The most significant increases in the year were seen in Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels which was up 20.3% and Transport, which was up 14.8%. Increased energy costs are reflected in the yearly increase of Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels with electricity up 38.1%, gas up 56.1%, home heating oil up 72.9% and solid fuels up 31.9% in the year. The annual change in Transport costs reflects a rise in the cost of diesel (+34.6%), petrol (+23.5%), purchase of motor cars (+11.3%) and airfares (+34.2%) compared to August 2021.
Education (-0.7%) and Miscellaneous Goods & Services (-0.5%) were the only divisions to show a decrease when compared with August 2021.
Monthly Changes
Consumer prices in August increased by 0.2% in the month. During August of last year, prices rose by 0.6% in the month. The most significant monthly price changes were increases in Health (+1.3%), Clothing & Footwear (+1.1%) and Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels (+1.0%). Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels rose mainly due to an increase in the cost of electricity, gas, rents, and mortgage interest repayments. This increase was partially offset by lower prices for home heating oil.
There was a decrease in Transport (-2.0%) in the month from July 2022, mainly due to lower prices for petrol, diesel, and services in respect of personal transport equipment. This decrease was partially offset by an increase in the cost airfares and motor cars.
It should be noted that these figures are relating to the Consumer Price Index. The flash estimate published on 31 August 2022 was related to the EU Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP)."
National Average Price
The CSO has also published today the National Average Price for a number of items for July 2022. The prices are lagging by a month due to the methodology used to compile these figures. In the year to July 2022, there were price increases in an 800g loaf of white sliced pan (+23c), 2 litres of full fat milk (+36c) and a pound of butter (+58c). The comprehensive list of items included in the National Average Prices and their monthly prices are available at: https://data.cso.ie/table/CPM12.