In Alicante, inflation did not ease as some might have expected. After three months of decreases, the CPI movement in June signaled a renewed rise, and July confirmed the rebound. The uptick was driven by higher costs for tourist services and, to a lesser extent, by shopping expenditures, lifting the year over year CPI to 2.6 percent in July. A notable factor in this trend is the rise in fuel prices, which contributed to the overall increase. The hotel and catering sector, which weighs heavily in the region, amplified the impact, keeping the rate higher than the national average and pushing it three tenths above the national figure. Core inflation also climbed, from 5.9 percent in June to 6.2 percent in July.
April, May and June had shown encouraging signs for Alicante as inflation cooled for three consecutive months. Yet the July jump to 2.6 percent marks a clear shift in momentum, even though the annual rate remains far from the 11.2 percent recorded in the same month a year ago.
Sources indicate that the start of the holiday season played a major role in this shift. Prices tied to tourism surged, with tourist packages alone rising significantly, as reported by the National Institute of Statistics in a recent Friday release. While packages were up by 16 percent compared with June, the year over year comparison shows a sharper increase of 26.8 percent. The portion of spending tied to dining out and lodging likewise advanced, showing a 6.5 percent rise versus July of the previous year.
What also moved in the same direction were broader shopping trends. The shopping cart appears to have reentered a period of moderation only gradually. Food and non alcoholic beverages rose by 1.3 percent from the prior month and gained 11.2 percent on an annual basis. Within this basket, alcoholic beverages and tobacco marked a modest monthly uptick of 0.1 percent, yet the annual inflation for this group reached 8.8 percent.