In December 2018, consumer prices in Croatia were 0.8 percent higher on the year and 0.8 percent lower on the month, the state statistics bureau said on Wednesday.

In the whole of 2018, the inflation rate has reached 1.5 percent, the bureau said.

Year on year, the highest increases, of 4.8 percent, were recorded in the prices of alcohol and tobacco products, while the prices of hotel and restaurant services rose by 2.6 percent, and housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels jumped by 2.2 percent.

The prices of food and soft drinks, which have the highest share in costs (27.9 percent), went up 0.5 percent. The prices of vegetables went up 6.4 percent and of fish by 3.4 percent.

The prices of health services in December 2018 were up 1.8 percent on the year, recreation and culture 1.2 percent, and education 0.7 percent.

The prices of furniture and maintenance increased by 0.2 percent.

The prices of clothing and footwear decreased by 1.6 percent, those of transport by 0.3 percent, and communication by 0.2 percent.

Raiffeisenbank Austria analysts said the slowing down of inflation growth rates is primarily owing to lower oil price growth rates on the world market.

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