ROME, ITALY / RankWire.AI / – According to Istat, Italy’s yearly consumer price growth slowed to 2.9% in July 2026, down from 3.0% recorded in June. The final national statistics released on Aug. 12 indicated that consumer prices increased by 0.3% compared to June. Initially, at the end of July, provisional figures suggested an annual rate of 2.8%. The conclusive figure, therefore, was 0.1 percentage points higher than the preliminary estimate. July marked the second consecutive month of declining annual inflation, following a peak of 3.2% in May.
Istat explained that the slowdown in the inflation rate was driven by reduced growth in non-regulated energy costs, unprocessed food, and various services. Specifically, non-regulated energy inflation decelerated to 11.4% from 13.3%. Unprocessed food prices rose by 3.6% compared to 4.4%, while inflation in miscellaneous services decreased to 1.8% from 2.5%. These declines offset the faster increases seen in regulated energy and several service sectors.
Prices for regulated energy climbed 14.8% year over year, an increase from 9.2% in June. Transport services grew by 1.6%, up from 1.1%. The cost of recreation, repair, and personal care services rose by 3.0%, compared to 2.7% in June. While goods inflation eased slightly to 3.2% from 3.3%, services inflation edged up to 2.7% from 2.6%. Core inflation, excluding energy and unprocessed food, remained steady at 1.6% for a second month.
Energy and Food Price Changes Influence July’s Inflation Rate
On a monthly basis, the data reflected similar patterns across categories. Regulated energy costs increased by 6.5% from June, with transport-related services rising by 1.4%. The sectors of recreation, repair, and personal care services experienced a 0.6% growth, while non-regulated energy prices went up by 0.5%. Processed food, including alcohol and housing services, each saw a 0.3% rise. Conversely, unprocessed food prices declined by 1.3% from June. These shifts resulted in the overall national index increasing by 0.3% compared to the previous month.
At the broader expense category level, costs for housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels rose by 7.2% from July 2025. Transport prices went up by 4.3%, and expenses for restaurants and accommodation services increased by 3.4%. Food and non-alcoholic beverages experienced a 1.4% rise, while clothing and footwear costs increased by 0.9%. The index excluding energy rose by 1.8% year over year, slightly lower than the 1.9% recorded in June. The combined grocery and unprocessed food index increased by 1.0%, easing from 1.3% the previous month.
The Harmonised Index Aligns with Euro Area Inflation
Italy’s harmonised consumer price index showed a 2.9% rise year over year in July, matching June’s rate. The harmonised index decreased by 1.0% from June due to seasonal sales, which are factored into this measure but not into the national index. This figure was consistent with the initial harmonised estimate. Eurostat reported euro area inflation at 2.9% in its July flash estimate, up from 2.8% in June. Consequently, Italy’s harmonised inflation rate aligned with the preliminary rate for the euro area.
The final national index reached 103.4 in July, with 2025 serving as the base year set at 100. The data reflected slower annual growth in several categories alongside faster increases in others. Specifically, non-regulated energy, unprocessed food, and miscellaneous services experienced deceleration, whereas regulated energy and transport services accelerated. Both the national and harmonised inflation measures recorded a 2.9% increase on an annual basis. Their monthly figures differ because seasonal sales influence the harmonised index but are not accounted for in the national measure.