Inflation rises again in April - highest level in 40 years

Created: 04/28/2022, 14:08

By: Thomas Schmidtutz

Breaking news from IPPEN MEDIA.

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Consumer prices in Germany continued to rise in April.

The aftermath of the Ukraine war is exacerbating the situation – and increasing the pressure on the ECB.

Wiesbaden - The inflation rate in Germany rose again in April.

Consumer prices were 7.4 percent above the level of the same month last year, as the Federal Statistical Office announced on Thursday based on preliminary calculations.

In March, the annual inflation rate climbed to 7.3 percent.

The main drivers of inflation are the sharp rise in energy prices.

Gas and electricity have become more expensive by a good third over the past year, and petrol has risen by almost 40 percent.

With an increase of over 92, heating oil even cost almost twice as much as in April 2021. Holidays have also become significantly more expensive.

Package tours were around 14 percent more expensive than a year ago.

According to preliminary figures, consumer prices in Germany rose by 0.8 percent from March to April of the current year.

Higher inflation rates reduce the purchasing power of consumers because they can then afford less for one euro.

The federal government has now put together two billion-dollar packages to relieve the burden on people in Germany.

In their most recent forecasts, economists are not giving the all-clear when looking ahead: for 2022 as a whole, they expect an average inflation rate of more than six percent in Europe's largest economy.

That would be the highest inflation since German reunification in 1990. For comparison: In 2021, consumer prices in Germany increased by an annual average of 3.1 percent.