Not since November 2023 have prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages risen as much in a single month.
Prices of chocolate and coffee have skyrocketed by around 30 percent. Dairy products have also increased in price and contribute to the rise, according to SCB.
It's clear that these goods are the kind that affect everyday economy a lot. It will affect the wallet when it's just food prices that are going up, says Alexandra Stråberg, chief economist at Länsförsäkringar.
Poor Harvests
According to Jens Magnusson, chief economist at SEB, some world market prices have turned down, but it has not yet had any impact on food prices.
Obviously, it's a bit longer before the lower world market prices affect products in stores. But it's reasonable to think that some of this should come down, he says.
The fact that prices of coffee and cocoa have shot up is due to several factors, including poor harvests in South America.
At the same time, inflation as a whole is decreasing according to the so-called KPIF measure to 2.3 percent in March, down from 2.9 percent in February, which is in line with the preliminary figures that came from SCB last week.
According to economists, the lower inflation rate is the important signal.
It's a good figure for the economy, households, and for the Swedish Central Bank, says Jens Magnusson.
Especially in a world where the risk of stagflation increases, that is, weak or no growth in combination with rising prices, he says.
Foreign Travel Pulls Down
If growth is weak and inflation is rising, it's harder for both the Swedish Central Bank and the government to act. If inflation, as now, is going down, you can act both financially and monetarily.
Among the goods and services that contributed to a lower inflation rate in March are, among others, clothing and shoes and foreign travel.
Air travel has long been something that has driven up the figures, so it will be interesting to see if this is a trend break now, says Magnusson.
Even lower prices on electricity and fuel contributed to a lower inflation rate according to SCB, while the price of, for example, restaurant visits pulled up inflation.
