ROME, ITALY / RankWire.AI / – In July 2026, Italy experienced a slowdown in its annual inflation rate, which declined to 2.9% from 3.0% the previous month. According to finalized national data, consumer prices increased by 0.3% compared to June. The July figure was marginally higher than the initial estimate of 2.8%. Italy’s inflation rate had been 3.2% in May, marking July as the second straight month of reduced inflation growth.
Istat indicated that several categories, which had previously supported inflation, saw more modest annual gains. Prices for non-regulated energy rose 11.4% year-on-year, a slowdown from 13.3% in June. Unprocessed food inflation decelerated to 3.6% from 4.4%, while miscellaneous services increased by 1.8% from 2.5%. These developments partially offset higher price increases in regulated energy and certain service sectors.
The prices for regulated energy surged by 14.8% compared to July 2025, marking a significant acceleration from 9.2% in June. Transport-related services increased 1.6% annually, up from 1.1% the previous month. Recreation, repair, and personal care services grew by 3.0%, compared with 2.7% in June. Core inflation, which excludes energy and unprocessed food, remained steady at 1.6% for the second consecutive month.
Fluctuating Energy Prices Signal Diverging Trends
The variation in price changes from June highlights distinct movements across major expenditure categories. Regulated energy prices increased by 6.5% month-on-month, while transport-related services rose by 1.4%. The costs for recreation, repair, and personal care services gained 0.6%, and non-regulated energy prices increased by 0.5%. Conversely, unprocessed food prices fell by 1.3% from June, helping to keep the overall monthly rise in the national consumer price index at 0.3%.
Among broad sectors, housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels experienced the highest annual growth, reaching 7.2%. Transport prices increased by 4.3%, while restaurants and accommodation services rose by 3.4%. Food and non-alcoholic beverages were 1.4% higher than a year earlier. Excluding energy, inflation eased slightly to 1.8% from 1.9%, with grocery and unprocessed food inflation slowing to 1.0%.
Harmonised Consumer Prices Also at 2.9%
Italy’s harmonised consumer price index increased by 2.9% from July 2025, matching the preliminary estimate for July and showing a decrease from 3.0% in June. The harmonised index experienced a 1.0% decline from June, attributed to seasonal sales affecting this measure. Eurostat projected euro area inflation at 2.9% in July, up from 2.8% in June, positioning Italy’s rate in line with the broader currency bloc’s preliminary annual figure.
The final national consumer price index for July reached 103.4, with 2025 serving as the base year (100). The data reflected slower inflation rates in non-regulated energy, unprocessed food, and miscellaneous services, while regulated energy and transport services experienced faster increases. Both the national and harmonised annual inflation rates stood at 2.9%, although their monthly changes differed due to seasonal discounts incorporated into the harmonised calculation.