The fluctuations are minimal, contained within a tenth of a percentage point. The trend of inflation in the Bergamo area is substantially stable, according to official numbers, even if the consumer’s “pulse” indicates that the situation is still critical as regards prices. According to data released yesterday by Istat and referring to April, inflation in the Bergamo area on an annual basis (i.e. the change between April 2023 and April 2024) now stands at 0.9%, compared to 1% in the previous survey; inflation on a monthly basis (the change from March to April 2024) was 0.3%, compared to 0.2% in the previous survey. In other words, price fluctuation remains minimal, but always with a “plus sign”, without a real decline compared to the inflationary escalation that has been ongoing since the spring of 2022.
The price dynamics in the province of Bergamo is slightly above the national average: at a national level, in fact, inflation on a monthly basis is 0.1% (against 0.3% in Bergamo) and inflation on an annual basis it is 0.8% (against 0.9% in Bergamo).
Skeptical consumers
This is what the general price index, the famous basket developed by Istat, says. However, consumers reveal a certain skepticism regarding the concreteness of these latest data. «The daily reality of those who shop – reasons Mina Busi, president of Adiconsum Bergamo – tells of a situation that is still critical, with prices that seem to continue to grow more decisively. Perhaps we should think about how this data is calculated or about a review of the Istat basket. The cost of shopping also remains high in Bergamo: the people we meet at our counters struggle, the salaries are not enough, and even when there are salary increases they are immediately eroded by inflation. Another rather heartfelt issue is linked to the fact that many food products today have smaller packages but at the same price as before: the package looks the same but the quantity contained is reduced”. For Christian Perria, president of Federconsumatori Bergamo, «the impression is that the data no longer fully capture the situation: it is true that price increases are no longer as rapid as a year ago, when they were mainly driven by energy goods, but between consumers there is no optimism. We will now see what the new decisions of the European Central Bank on interest rates will be, which have concrete repercussions on mortgages and therefore on families, and it will be necessary to understand the effects of the new rules on the Superbonus: it is a topic that has a lot to do with family budgets, also with a view to the renovations that many may have to face due to the European directive on green homes”.
Massimiliano Dona, president of the National Consumers Union, also speaks of an “optical illusion”, commenting on the national data from Istat: “Prices continue to rise, even if slightly, see the increase on March”.
The greatest increases are observed in the prices of accommodation services (i.e. hotels and non-hotel accommodation facilities, +14.4%), holiday packages (+11.4%), nursery schools and primary education (+6.9 %), while the other most significant items include rentals for homes (+4.5%), catering services (+3.4%), food products (+1.4%)
The basket
But which are the items in the basket that, according to Istat, are “running” the most in the Bergamo area? On an annual basis, the greatest increases are observed in the prices of accommodation services (i.e. hotels and non-hotel accommodation facilities, +14.4%), holiday packages (+11.4%), nursery schools and primary education ( +6.9%), while the other most significant items include rentals for homes (+4.5%), catering services (+3.4%), food products (+1.4 %). It therefore seems possible to glimpse the risk of a high holiday price, as often happens when we approach (weather permitting) the summer season: accommodation services and holiday packages are in fact the items with the highest increases even on a monthly basis. However, there are also categories that are decreasing, at least according to Istat: electricity and gas prices today would be 23.8% lower than a year ago.
Considering the entire basket, Bergamo is the third Lombard province with the highest annual inflation, after Milan (+1.4%), Varese (+1.1%); at the top of the national ranking are Venice, Siena and Brindisi, all at +1.9%.
