The annual rate of inflation fell to 4.1% in the 12 months to January from 4.6% in December, new figures from the Central Statistics Office show today.
This marks the third consecutive month where the inflation rate was lower than 5%.
The CSO figures also show that inflation – as measured by the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) and which strips out mortgage interest costs – fell back to 2.7%.
The HICP rate excluding energy and unprocessed goods dropped to 3.8%, the CSO added.
Today’s figures show that the most significant price growth in the 12 months to January were seen in Recreation & Culture costs, with prices there rising by 9.3%, while Restaurants & Hotels prices increased by 7.2%.
The CSO noted a 41.8% annual jump in the cost of package holidays.
Clothing and footwear was the only division to show a decrease, with prices down 1.3%, when compared with January of last year.
The CSO today also published the national average prices of some staple items – including bread, milk and a pint of stout.
These show that the national average price for a large white sliced pan was down three cents in the year to January 2024, while the same size brown sliced pan reduced by a cent in the year.
The CSO said that spaghetti per 500g increased by 12 cents in the year while the average price for 2.5kg of potatoes was up 38 cents.
Full fat milk per two litres decreased by eight cents in the year while butter per pound fell by seven cents and there was no change in the price of Irish cheddar per kg in the year.
Meanwhile, the national average price of a take-home 50cl can of lager at €2.34 was up 15 cents on average from January 2023 while a take-home 50cl can of cider at €2.61 was up 11 cents.
And the national average price of a pint of stout in licensed premises was €5.62, up 41 cents in the year, while a pint of lager was €6.06, up 31 cents compared with January last year.
Article Source – Inflation slows to 4.1% in January from 4.6% in December – CSO – RTE