Italian Inflation Rises to 3.2% in May Driven by Energy Costs

Italy's inflation rate is expected to rise to 3.2% year-on-year in May, an increase from the 2.7% recorded in April, according to preliminary estimates from the National Institute of Statistics (Istat). This uptick is largely attributed to a significant surge in energy prices.

The acceleration in inflation is mainly due to the rising costs of non-regulated energy products, which saw an increase from 9.6% to 12.6%. Regulated energy products also contributed, with their prices rising from 5.3% to 5.8%. Additionally, services related to transportation experienced a rise from 0.6% to 1.8%, and recreational, cultural, and personal care services increased from 2.6% to 3.0%.

Underlying inflation, which excludes volatile energy and fresh food prices, also showed a slight increase, moving from 1.6% to 1.8% in April. However, the prices for the "shopping basket" remained stable in May at 2.3%. The harmonized index of consumer prices (IPCA) registered a monthly increase of 0.4% and an annual increase of 3.3%, compared to 2.8% in the previous month.

For the full year 2026, Istat forecasts an inflation rate of 2.6%. These figures indicate a challenging economic environment with rising costs impacting consumers.