BERLIN, July 11 (Xinhua) -- Consumer prices in Germany increased by 1.6 percent compared to the same month last year, the German Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) revealed on Thursday.
Compared to May, when consumer prices in Germany had only increased by 1.4 percent, the consumer price index rose by 0.3 percent, according to Destatis.
"The price increase remains moderate," Thiess Petersen, senior economic expert at the German Bertelsmann Foundation, told Xinhua.
Based on the harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP), which is conducted to compare inflation rates of EU countries, the inflation rate in Germany stood at 1.5 percent, according to the German statistical office.
Despite the slight increase, the inflation rate in Germany is still below the ECB's target, which is aiming for an annual inflation rate in the European Union of just under 2 percent.
However, inflation in Germany is still above the annual inflation rate of the entire eurozone which Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, estimated at 1.2 percent for 2019.
For 2019 as a whole, economic expert Petersen is expecting that the rise in consumer prices in Germany will "remain below" the two percent target of the ECB. Real wages of employees in Germany would continue to rise, strengthening domestic demand, "which is currently an important pillar of the German economy".
In June, the rise in inflation was caused "in particular" by prices for holidays, which increased by more than 6 percent, according to the German statistical office Destatis.
This strong increase had been due to a calendar effect as the public holiday Whitsun which Germans often use for short vacations "fell late this year", Destais explained. Last year, Whitsun had taken place in May.
Total prices for energy products in Germany rose above-average at 2.5 percent in June compared to the same month last year. While district heating, natural gas and electricity were "markedly higher" than in June last year, prices for heating oil fell by 3.5 percent.
Food prices rose at a below-average rate of 1.2 percent but showed a mixed picture as vegetables were "substantially" more expensive than one year earlier while prices for fruits were "significantly" cheaper.
