The inflation, which is defined by the price increase when compared to the previous month, has gone down, in May, in Spain for the third consecutive month.

According to INE, the inflation evolution, in May, was caused by the price decrease of the tourist packages. The inflation numbers were also affected by the electricity prices, that had a smaller increase than the same period last year.

The underlying inflation rate (excluding energy and fresh food, traditionally the most volatile items in the shopping basket) stood at 2.2% in May in Spain, two tenths of a percentage point lower than in April.

In terms of month-on-month change (compared to the previous month), prices rose by 0.1% compared to April.

At the end of September 2024, Spain ended zero VAT on certain foods and restored all normal consumption tax rates by the end of last year, thus ending almost three years of extraordinary measures to control inflation.

The Spanish government adopted packages to respond to rising prices after recording the highest figures in the European Union (EU) in the first half of 2022 and the highest inflation in the country since 1984 (10.77%) in July of that year.