Year-on-year, prices rose the most for alcohol and tobacco, climbing by 2.1 percent, and services, up by 1.8 percent. Food prices were up by 0.7 percent and clothing prices rose by 0.6 percent.

Household energy prices were flat, consumer durable prices dropped by 0.8 percent and prices in the category of goods which includes vehicle fuel rose by an annual 1.0 percent as the excise tax on petrol and diesel rose.

Hungarian lawmakers earlier decided to link the excise tax content of vehicle fuel to global oil prices from October. If the price of Brent is under 50 US dollars per barrel, the content rises, and if it remains over that price threshold, the content is returned to earlier levels.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile fuel and food prices, was up a seasonally-adjusted 1.5 percent year-on-year in November, picking up from 1.4 percent in the previous month.

Prices in a basket of goods and services used by pensioners climbed by 1.1 percent, following a 0.9 percent increase in October. Core inflation rose by 0.1 percent and pensioners’ prices climbed by 0.2 percent month-on-month. Economy ministry state secretary László Balogh said the data was in line with the government’s target annual inflation rate of around 0.4 percent.

In January-November, consumer prices were up by an annual 0.3 percent, Balogh told public news channel M1.

He said there was no surprise in the November figures, as Hungary has now started to see “some very modest inflationary movement” brought on by economic growth and an increase in wages.

Republished with permission of Hungary Matters, MTI’s daily newsletter.