Inflation in Germany highest since reunification

October is the second straight month with a double-digit indicator, official figures show

Germany’s annual inflation rate jumped to 10.4% in October, exceeding expectations and hitting a new historic high, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said in a press release on Friday.

“At 10.4%, the inflation rate has reached an all-time high since German reunification,” the head of the agency, Dr. Georg Thiel, said.

According to Thiel, “enormous price rises for energy products” continued to be the main reason. Energy prices were 43% higher in October 2022 than at the same time last year, data shows, with a particularly large price increase for household energy (up 55%). Natural gas prices more than doubled compared to last year, up 109.8%.

After energy, food prices showed the biggest growth, rising 20.3% year-on-year, with higher prices seen in all food groups. Excluding energy prices, the inflation rate stood at 6.5%; if both energy and food are excluded, it is even lower, at 5%.

READ MORE: Germany faces sharp drop in real income

Compared to September, energy prices were up 3.4% and food prices were up 1.3%.

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