Rising prices: four figures to understand everything

Aurélien Fleurot, Carole Ferry, Emmanuel Duteil and Maud Descamps 6:19 a.m., January 27, 2022

Food products, gas, electricity, fuels... Prices are on the rise everywhere in France.

This Thursday, Europe 1 is therefore mobilizing around a special day devoted to purchasing power.

What impact does inflation have on the daily lives of French people?

How to explain it?

Answer in four key figures. 

+18.6% for energy

Finding a household that hasn't experienced an increase in its heating bills is mission impossible.

The increases are even spectacular for those who heat themselves with fuel oil: filling your tank cost you 1,500 euros 1 year ago, it is now 2,300 euros.

According to data from the Ministry of Ecological Transition, for an order of 2,000 to 4,999 liters, the price of a liter of domestic fuel oil was 1.0689 euros per liter in mid-January.

Heating with wood remains a less expensive option, even if there too, sales up 25 to 30% in 1 year have inflated the bills of those who have a pellet stove.

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If at home, the heating is done with gas then your annual bill has increased by 45% between January and October 2021. Regarding electricity, the trend has been on the rise for 10 years but this dynamic has accelerated significantly since 2019 reminds Antoine Autier, head of studies at UFC Que Choisir.

The measures taken by the government (price freeze, tariff shield) nevertheless make it possible to contain these increases.

Of course, you can compete, but this solution has its limits.

Playing during off-peak and peak hours also remains an option.  

Among the few solutions to really lower the bill, there is better control of your consumption, explains Antoine Autier.

"Sometimes, we don't realize that by turning down the heating a little bit, we won't necessarily be colder. And in reality, the savings on the bill can be significant because the heating and hot water represent 2/3 of the electricity bill."

According to ADEME, the Agency for Ecological Transition, lowering your heating by one degree reduces the bill by 5 to 10%. 

+ 1.4% for food

Many staple foods have seen their prices go up this year.

According to Familles Rurales, the price of fruit and vegetables has increased the most: +9% compared to 2019. Result: according to the association, eating healthy costs on average €696 per month for the first prices , and €1,148 for organic, for a family of four. 

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INSEE figures also show an increase in the price of pasta, couscous semolina and fresh fish.

According to the Trade Federation, the price of pork and butter, on the other hand, has fallen.

For 2022, everything is now played out with the traditional showdown of trade negotiations, which this year opposes manufacturers faced with the rise in the price of raw materials, and large retailers, which put forward the defense of purchasing power.

Inflation, still contained in food products, is likely to soar this year.

Even Lidl announces an increase of 3 to 3.5%.

And, the food check on which the government has been working for several months is not intended to come out of the boxes by the end of the five-year term.

+63.6% for the barrel of Brent

This is one of the major concerns of the French who take their car every day to go to work: the price of their full tank of gas.

Unleaded 95 is displayed at €1.72 and diesel at €1.65.

Over one year, the price of a 40-litre tank of petrol has increased by an average of €12 and €13.50 if you are running on diesel. 

This increase is primarily due to the rise in the price of a barrel of Brent, which passed the 90 dollar mark for the first time since 2014, against 55 dollars a year ago.

This rise in barrel prices is partly due to the health situation.

The wind of panic caused by Omicron is beginning to calm down, experts believe.

Demand is therefore on the rise again.

Other factors: the very tense situation in Ukraine and the exchange rate.

With a weaker euro, oil prices are higher even if the price of a barrel of Brent in dollars remains the same.

2.8% general inflation 

In December, consumer prices increased by 0.2%, bringing inflation to 2.8% over the twelve months of 2021. Inflation has been accelerating for several months in France, as at the global level, linked the recovery of the economy after the first waves of the Covid-19 epidemic. In France, the rise in prices has accelerated since the summer: inflation was only 1.2% over one year in July, then 1.9% in August and 2.2% in September. 

Unfortunately, these increases are not over.

The prices of consumer products will experience strong increases in the coming months.

The boss of Intermarché recognizes it: the average basket will increase, because the suppliers who

themselves have to face very high cost increases, require an increase of between 7 and 10%.

“Obviously, our job is going to be to break down this wall of inflation,” he tries to reassure.

One thing is certain: we can already prepare to pay a little more for our shopping.