HELSINKI: The year-on-year change in consumer prices was 0.3 per cent in April as calculated by Statistics Finland. In March, the inflation stood at -0.0 per cent. The slight rise in inflation was influenced, for example, by increases in the consumer prices of the vehicle tax, maintenance charges, hospital fees and reimbursable prescription medicines from one year ago. Starting from January, the changes in consumer prices are calculated based on the new base year of the Consumer Price Index 2015=100.
Consumer prices were raised in April by increases in the vehicle tax, maintenance charges, hospital fees and reimbursable prescription medicines from one year ago, the data show. The rising of consumer prices was curbed most by reductions in the prices of liquid fuels and average housing loan interest rates from the year before. The consumer prices changed by 0.3 per cent from March to April.
Each mid-month, Statistics Finland’s interviewers collect altogether around 48,000 prices on nearly 500 commodities from approximately 2,700 outlets for the Consumer Price Index. In addition, some 1,000 items of price data are gathered by centralised collection. The year-on-year change in the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices stood at 0.3 per cent in April and that in the Index at Constant Taxes measuring market inflation at 0.2 per cent.
Over twelve months, the combined raising impact on consumer prices from changes in commodity tax rates was thus 0.1 percentage points. The month-on-month change in the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices was 0.3 per cent and that in the Index at Constant Taxes 0.3 per cent in April.
