In France, further acceleration of inflation

The market at Belleville in the northeast of Paris.

© Lonely Planet/Getty Images

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2 mins

According to data from INSEE, the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies, inflation increased in February by 1% over one month to settle according to the European calculation at +7.2% over one year. .

This slight increase in inflation would be due to the acceleration of "prices of food and services", explains the Institute

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According to INSEE, inflation in France reached 6.2% in February over one year, driven by food prices, after having eased to 5.9% in December and 6% in January.

While the cost of energy is slowing markedly due in particular to the regulated electricity tariffs implemented on February 1, food prices continue to rise sharply.

They started to rise again in February with more than 14.5% over one year.

It was fresh products that increased the most with an increase of 14.2% against 10.2% last month.

In January 2023, producer prices for agricultural products remained sharply up year on year (+10.7%) https://t.co/LSIhUKGr8d

— Insee (@InseeFr) February 28, 2023

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And it's not finished.

Following annual discussions between producers and distributors, prices are likely to rise again in March and could reach 10%.

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Further increases are to be expected in French supermarkets

Annual commercial negotiations between distributors and agro-industry suppliers are underway and will end on Tuesday evening.

A large majority of food prices are expected to increase further in the shopping basket of the French.

Everyone suffers from inflation: this is the main argument of the agri-food industry.

Increase in their production costs, raw materials, packaging, etc.

They ask supermarkets to buy their products more expensive.

Emmanuel Macron also called on Saturday, February 25, large retailers to "participate in the effort".

But distributors are standing up against these demands.

judging them exaggerated, not always justified and even sometimes “delusional” recently explained the CEO of the Carrefour group.

The supermarkets undertook last December “to take into account the increases suffered”, but make no secret of the consequences that these purchasing conditions currently negotiated will have.

There will be increases for consumers: + 10% in the first half of 2023, this is the forecast of the president of the Système U cooperative.

The increases will be passed on gradually, distributors say.

They are added to the current 14% inflation, already suffered by French households.

Households who are turning massively to the cheapest brands... and distributors are now saying it: certain brands that are too expensive could very quickly disappear from the shelves of their supermarkets. 

Since the start of the conflict in Ukraine, no country has been spared 

The United Kingdom is experiencing double-digit inflation with food prices soaring by more than 17% -

- and soaring energy prices.

Spain, which in December launched

of 10 billion euros, shows a slight rebound in inflation in February to more than 6% over one year.

As for US inflation, it rebounded to 5.4% in January.

And all these figures confirm that inflation will persist.

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