German consumer prices rose 3.3 percent in September from a year earlier, up from 2.9 percent in August, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said in its final reading. It is the highest annual rate since December 2023. Prices rose 0.6 percent on the month.
The increase extends a run higher from 2.3 percent in June and 2.8 percent in July. Destatis President Ruth Brand said energy price developments once again lie behind the rise in inflation, adding that price increases were especially felt in petroleum products at fuel stations and in heating fuel.
Energy drives the increase
Energy product prices climbed 14.9 percent on the year. Fuel prices jumped 37.1 percent and heating oil surged 74.9 percent, while solid fuel rose 15.6 percent.
Not every energy category rose. Electricity prices fell 5.5 percent, natural gas dropped 2.8 percent and district heating declined 1 percent, reflecting federal government measures introduced since the start of the year and the removal of the gas storage levy.
Food prices rose a more modest 0.4 percent. Services prices increased 2.7 percent, and core inflation, which excludes food and energy, stood at 2.4 percent.
Pressure builds on the ECB
The reading keeps German inflation above the European Central Bank’s medium-term target of 2 percent, a gap that has persisted for months. The ECB has raised its deposit facility rate twice this year to 2.50 percent, and economists expect it may continue raising rates, though it could wait until December for its next move.
Behind the latest spike in energy costs lies the war in the Middle East, which pushed crude oil temporarily above $100 a barrel. US annual inflation stood at 3.4 percent in August.
Related: Mexico's annual inflation rises to 3.45 percent in September · Colombia inflation at 6.29% in September driven by food and Services
Source: Destatis · European Central Bank | Data: FRED — St. Louis Fed
