Record inflation: These foods became particularly expensive in May

Created: 06/17/2022, 05:42

By: Lisa Mayerhofer

Bad news for barbecue fans: Meat has become significantly more expensive as a result of inflation.

(Archive image) © Bernd Weißbrod/dpa

Bad news for barbecue fans: Meat has become significantly more expensive as a result of inflation.

But many other foods are also recording price increases.

Wiesbaden – The inflation rate in Germany has reached a record level.

Consumer prices rose by 7.9 percent in May compared to the same month last year, the Federal Statistical Office announced on Tuesday.

"The last time there was a similarly high inflation rate in the former federal territory was in the winter of 1973/1974," said the President of the Federal Office, Georg Thiel.

At that time, as a result of the first oil crisis, mineral oil prices had risen sharply.

Inflation heavily impacted by high energy and food prices

Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, the previously observed rise in energy prices has “noticeably intensified” and is having a “significant” impact on the inflation rate, the statistical office pointed out.

In addition, there are delivery bottlenecks due to interrupted supply chains - also due to the corona pandemic - as well as "significant price increases at the upstream economic levels".

Energy prices rose by 38.3 percent within a year in May.

The prices for light heating oil almost doubled (plus 94.8 percent);

Natural gas became more expensive by 55.2 percent and fuels became more expensive by 41.0 percent.

Electricity increased by 21.5 percent.

Inflation: Meat and cooking oils have become particularly expensive

Consumers also had to dig significantly deeper into their pockets for groceries in May than a year earlier: Prices rose by 11.1 percent compared to May 2021.

The Federal Office explained that the upward pressure on prices “intensified again significantly” after an increase of 8.6 percent in April.

An overview shows that almost all foods are affected by price increases – cooking oils the most and grain products the weakest.

But meat has also become significantly more expensive.

• Edible fats and oils: + 38.7 percent

• Meat and meat products: + 16.5 percent

• Dairy products and eggs: +13.1 percent

• Bread and cereal products: + 10.8 percent

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The scientific director of the Institute for Macroeconomics and Business Cycle Research (IMK) of the Hans Böckler Foundation, Sebastian Dullien, gave little hope on Tuesday that the inflation rate would fall anytime soon.

"Since there are no signs of easing in the prices for energy and food on the world market, inflation in Germany is likely to remain high in the coming months at least until the end of the year," he explained.