ZAGREB, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- Inflation rate in Croatia reached 4.1 percent in August, compared with the same period last year, the Croatian Bureau of Statistics (CBS) said on Tuesday.
Monthly, consumer prices increased by 0.3 percent.
According to the CBS, energy prices rose by 17.4 percent year-on-year while services increased by 7.2 percent.
According to a flash estimate from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, published on Tuesday, annual inflation in the eurozone is expected to be 3.3 percent in August.
Croatian Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Tomislav Coric told local media on Tuesday that the current inflation trend is partly due to factors affecting energy prices and the broader European economy.
"I do not believe there will be a rapid decline in energy prices. Energy prices will continue to push inflation higher, and that is very difficult to offset in other segments. I do not believe we can expect a rapid reduction in inflation this year. Unless there is a de-escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, there cannot be any major decline," the minister said.
"We all depend on the flow of energy through the Strait of Hormuz," he said, adding that it is extremely difficult to forecast the situation when escalation and de-escalation in the Middle East are occurring daily.
He stressed that Croatia is gradually approaching the European Union average for inflation, which he described as a positive development. ■
