Inflation: price rise slows sharply to 3.4% year-on-year in November

2023-11-30 10:38:37

Is the hardest part behind us? The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee) said this Thursday that inflation had slowed significantly in November, to 3.4% over one year. “This drop in inflation would be due to the slowdown over one year in the prices of services, energy and, to a lesser extent, manufactured products and food,” the institute said. Over one month, consumer prices should fall “slightly” by 0.2% in November 2023, after increasing by 0.1% in October.

A little earlier, the Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire indicated on France Inter that the price increase would fall back below 4% “before the end of 2023”. “Inflation is defeated,” he insisted. According to him, this slowdown in price increases will not apply to everything. “Sugar is one of the products whose price is not falling,” he said, just like chocolate. “Prices on oil or poultry are falling,” he added.

“We are emerging from the inflationary crisis, I confirm it.” @BrunoLeMaire affirms that “we will be below 4% inflation by the end of 2023” and congratulates itself on having “controlled inflation in two years” thanks to “responsible choices” by the government. #le710inter pic.twitter.com/qYOTFjA3D8

— France Inter (@franceinter) November 30, 2023

According to Bruno Le Maire, France has “succeeded in controlling inflation in two years”, which represents “a real economic success”. For him, this is explained in particular by the “responsible choices” made by the State. “We have not given in to the ease of rising wages [ni] to price blocking,” he added. The Minister of the Economy also confirmed France’s growth forecasts for 2023 (1%) and 2024 (1.4%).

Decline in consumption

At the same time, INSEE specifies that the consumption expenditure of French households fell by 0.9% in October over one month, after stability in September. The change in spending on goods for September was revised downward by 0.2 points. Food consumption fell by 1.5% after an increase of 1.2% in September, and energy consumption fell again (-2.5% after -1.3%).

Economic activity for its part contracted by 0.1% in the third quarter compared to the previous three months, indicated INSEE, lowering its first estimate of a modest increase in gross domestic product (+ 0.1 %). From July to September, investments as well as household consumption were less sustained than previously estimated, detailed the National Institute of Statistics. This means that France will enter recession if GDP also falls in the fourth quarter.