Inflation eases by three tenths in May, to 1.9%.

On average, prices in May rose 1.9% compared to the same month last year, according to data published today by the National Statistics Institute (INE). The figure is still provisional, but if confirmed by Statistics, it would represent a decrease of three-tenths of a percentage point compared to April's figure and, most importantly, the CPI is back below 2%, seven months later.

Two percent is the threshold the European Central Bank (ECB) sets for considering price increases under control. That is, they are dynamic enough to reap the benefits of price stability and provide enough room to avoid deflation.

Core inflation, which excludes the distorting effect of energy and unprocessed food prices due to their volatility and therefore reflects the structural state of prices, stood at 2.1%, a decrease of three-tenths of a percentage point since last month.

According to Statistics, the trend is mainly due to the decline in leisure and cultural prices, compared to the increase in May 2024. Also influential, although to a lesser extent, is the drop in transportation prices, which is greater than in May of last year.

And also, electricity, whose price increase—largely due to the reinforcement of the system after the blackout—has been lower than in the same month last year.