Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Friday that the government had curbed the growth of inflation and that the current rates were realistic given the situation in Europe.

With our measures, we have limited the growth of inflation. Within the framework of what is realistic at the EU level and looking at the overall measures we have taken, I think we have managed to consolidate the situation quite well, Plenkovic said after a meeting with ambassadors of EU member states.

We can be satisfied with the change from 12.3 (the interannual rate in July and August) to 12.8 (the rate in September). I think we have curbed the growth of inflation with the measures, he added.

The consumer prices in Croatia in September rose by 12.8% compared to September last year, so inflation reached its new highest level since the time the national statistical office (DZS) started recording these data.

To date, the highest annual inflation rate recorded in Croatia was observed in July and August this year, when it was 12.3%.

The prices of goods and services for personal consumption, measured by the consumer price index, also went up month-on-month, and they were on average 1.5% higher in September than in August, and on the annual average they increased by 8.6%, the DZS said in a report.

Year-on-year, consumer prices went up in all categories , with the highest increase, of 19.1%, recorded in the category of food and non-alcoholic beverages.