ROME, ITALY / RankWire.AI / – In July 2026, Italy experienced a slight decrease in its annual consumer inflation rate, which dropped to 2.9% from 3.0% in June. The official figures released on Aug. 12 indicated that consumer prices increased by 0.3% compared to June. Earlier estimates at the end of July had placed the annual rate at 2.8%. Consequently, the final data was 0.1 percentage point higher than the preliminary flash estimate. This was the second consecutive month of falling inflation after it peaked at 3.2% in May.
Istat attributed the slowdown in inflation mainly to reduced growth in non-regulated energy prices, unprocessed food, and various services. Non-regulated energy inflation decelerated to 11.4% from 13.3%. Inflation for unprocessed food eased to 3.6% from 4.4%. Meanwhile, inflation in miscellaneous services declined to 1.8% from 2.5%. These reductions counterbalanced higher inflation rates seen in regulated energy and several other service sectors.
Prices for regulated energy surged by 14.8% year-over-year, up from 9.2% in June. Transport-related services grew by 1.6%, compared to 1.1%. Recreation, repair, and personal care services increased by 3.0%, whereas in June they rose by 2.7%. The inflation rate for goods dropped slightly to 3.2% from 3.3%, while services inflation edged up to 2.7% from 2.6%. Core inflation, which excludes energy and unprocessed food, remained steady at 1.6% for a second month.
Energy and Food Costs Drive July Inflation Changes
On a monthly basis, similar patterns across categories were observed. Regulated energy prices rose by 6.5% since June, while transport-related services increased by 1.4%. Recreation, repair, and personal care services gained 0.6%, and non-regulated energy prices grew by 0.5%. Processed food, including alcohol and housing-related services, each rose by 0.3%. Conversely, unprocessed food prices declined by 1.3% from June. This combination of movements resulted in the overall national index being 0.3% higher than in June.
At the broader expenditure level, categories such as housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels saw a 7.2% increase compared to July 2025. Transport prices rose by 4.3%, while restaurants and accommodation services increased by 3.4%. Food and non-alcoholic beverages experienced a 1.4% rise, and clothing and footwear went up by 0.9%. The index excluding energy rose by 1.8% year-over-year, slightly down from 1.9% in June. The grocery and unprocessed food segment increased by 1.0%, easing from 1.3% the previous month.
The Harmonised Index Reflects Euro Area Inflation
Italy’s harmonised consumer price index increased by 2.9% year-over-year in July, marginally below the 3.0% recorded in June. The harmonised measure decreased by 1.0% compared to June, primarily due to seasonal sales, which impact this index but not the national one. This annual figure matched the initial harmonised estimate. Eurostat reported that euro area inflation stood at 2.9% in its July flash estimate, up from 2.8% in June. Italy’s harmonised annual rate aligned with this preliminary figure for the currency bloc.
The final national index reached 103.4 in July, based on 2025 as the reference year set at 100. The July data reflected a mix of slower annual growth in certain categories, such as non-regulated energy, unprocessed food, and miscellaneous services, along with faster increases in others like regulated energy and transport services. Both the national and harmonised measures recorded an inflation rate of 2.9%. Monthly differences arose because seasonal sales are included in the harmonised index but not in the national measurement.