Berlin: Monthly inflation in Germany was at 0.5% in December, slightly more than preliminary data of 0.4%, according to official data released by Destatis on Thursday.

According to Anadolu Agency, this increase was due to seasonal factors such as prices for travel, including package holidays, which jumped 9.2% in December. In addition, rail prices for journeys rose in December as part of the annual price adjustment, with prices for long-distance transport and local transport up 4.2% and 3% respectively.

Annually, consumer prices climbed 2.6% in December compared to the same month in 2023, confirming the preliminary results published on Jan. 7. Consumer price inflation in 2024 on average was significantly lower at 2.2% than in the three previous years. The annual inflation average in 2023 was 5.9%, with 6.9% in 2022 and 3.1% in 2021.

Rising prices for insurance, social institutions, restaurant services, and vehicle maintenance and repair also contributed to the trend, up 13.2%, 7.8%, 6.8%, and 6.1% on average in 2024, respectively. Core inflation, which excludes energy and food prices, was at 3.0% in 2024 after a 5.1% rise in 2023 and a 3.8% increase in 2022.