The National Institute of Statistics (INE) published that the consumer price index (CPI) in Spain rose by 0.4% in February compared to January, a reading that confirms its preliminary figure and aligns with expectations from analysts at FactSet. The groups with the most significant positive monthly impact on the monthly CPI rate were:
i) Hotels, cafés, and restaurants, which showed a variation of 0.7%, due to the increase in prices for dining and accommodation services; and ii) Transportation, with a rate of 0.6%, mainly due to the rise in prices for fuels and lubricants for personal vehicles, as well as maintenance and repair of personal vehicles. On the other hand, the only group with a negative monthly impact was Clothing and Footwear, with a monthly variation of -1.5%, due to price decreases typical at the end of the winter sales period.
In year-on-year terms, the CPI in Spain rose by 3.0% in February (up from 2.9% in January), a reading that also matched its preliminary figure and expectations from analysts. The group that had the most significant influence on the increase in the annual rate was Housing, whose annual rate increased by almost two points to 9.8%. This rise was due to an increase in electricity prices, compared to a decrease in February 2024. Meanwhile, among the groups with negative influence, Transportation stood out, with an annual variation of 0.3%, which was one percentage point lower than the previous month.
This behavior was largely due to prices for fuels and lubricants for personal vehicles, which saw a smaller increase in February compared to the same month in 2024. On the other hand, core inflation, which excludes prices for unprocessed food and energy products, decreased by two-tenths compared to January, settling at 2.2%. This is the lowest rate since December 2021. Finally, it should be noted that, according to the final reading of the data, the harmonized CPI (HICP) rose by 0.4% in February compared to January, a reading similar to its preliminary figure and what analysts expected. In year-on-year terms, the HICP remained stable at 2.9% in February, slightly below the initially estimated 3.0%, which was what consensus had projected.
