PARIS (dpa-AFX) - France's consumer price inflation accelerated to a five-month high in July largely due to a rebound in manufactured products prices linked to the postponed summer sales, preliminary data from the statistical office Insee showed Friday.
Consumer prices grew 0.8 percent on a yearly basis, faster than the 0.2 percent rise seen in June and economists' forecast of 0.3 percent. This was the fastest rate in five months.
Manufactured product prices increased at a faster pace of 1.8 percent and the decline in energy prices slowed to 7.4 percent.
Meanwhile, food inflation slowed to 1.1 percent from 2.6 percent. Services cost advanced 1 percent after rising 1.1 percent in June.
Month-on-month, consumer prices gained unexpectedly by 0.4 percent versus a 0.1 percent rise a month ago. Economists had expected prices to fall 0.1 percent.
Inflation based on the harmonized index of consumer prices, climbed to 0.9 percent from 0.2 percent in June. The rate was forecast to rise marginally to 0.3 percent.
On a monthly basis, the HICP advanced 0.4 percent versus a 0.1 percent increase in the previous month and forecast of 0.1 percent drop.
Another report from Insee showed that household consumption exceeded its February level by 2.3 percent. The increase was driven by a 5.8 percent rise in manufactured goods consumption.
However, energy spending dropped by 1.8 percent and food consumption gained 0.2 percent.
In the second quarter, household consumption fell 7.1 percent after declining 6.8 percent in the first quarter.
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