Finland's inflation rate — the year-on-year change in consumer prices — ticked up very slightly to 3.6 percent in December, according to a report published on Monday by Statistics Finland.
The rate had stood at 3.3 percent in November.
The average interest rate on housing loans and consumer credit, along with the cost of international package holidays outside the EU, were the biggest factors in the increase.
However, these price rises were curbed somewhat by reductions in the price of electricity, shares in housing companies and real estate.
December's result means that the average inflation rate for 2023 was 6.2 percent last year, according to Statistics Finland's preliminary data.
The average inflation for the whole year was 6.2 percent last year. Food and alcohol beverages saw a year-on-year increase of 9 percent in 2023 compared to 2022, while the prices of housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels were up 9.1 percent.
PTT: Food inflation set to decrease
Food prices in Finland are set to level off during this coming year, according to a forecast by the Pellervo Economic Research Institute (PTT).
The year-on-year change in food prices peaked in February last year, at 16.9 percent — a record high level.
The rate has slowed since then, with PTT now predicting that the price of food will stabilize even further during 2024.
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