Credit: STATEC

On Wednesday 4 June 2025, Luxembourg's national statistical institute, STATEC, reported that the annual inflation rate rose to 2.0% in May 2025 - up from 1.7% in April.

In May 2025, the national consumer price index, calculated by STATEC, increased by 0.6% compared to the previous month. STATEC attributed this change to the increase in the prices of certain services, triggered in particular by the wage indexation which took effect on 1 May.

Monthly inflation was largely due to the surge in service prices, which rose by 1.3% in one month. Retirement and nursing home fees increased by 2.3% from 1 May. In addition, prices for home maintenance and repair services rose by 2.0%, car maintenance and repairs rose by 1.1%, domestic services went up by 2.6% and creches and "maisons relais" (childcare centres) increased by 11.8%. STATEC also highlighted price increases in the catering (+0.8%) and home insurance (+0.8%) sectors. Moreover, medical and dental service prices are automatically linked to wage indexation.

In terms of food, prices rose slightly by 0.1% compared to April. Pasta (+1.5%), chocolate (+2.3%) and coffee (+2.4%) contributed the most to this increase, while the prices of other products, such as fresh vegetables (-4.1%), fresh fruit (-1.4%) and poultry (-1.2%), were down. Over one year, food prices increased by 1.5% compared to May 2024.

Other price increases observed in May included those for airline tickets (+17.9%), jewellery and watches (+2.2%), tyres (+0.9%) and cleaning appliances (+6.8%).

For the third consecutive month, petroleum product prices continued on a downward trend. Compared to April, the prices of crude oil products fell by 1.7%. At the pump, petrol prices fell by 1.4% and diesel prices fell by 2.2% compared to April. Heating oil prices dropped by 3.8%, while town gas prices remained unchanged. Compared to May 2024, petroleum product prices were 4.1% lower.

The annual inflation rate thus stood at 2.0% in May 2025, compared to 1.7% the previous month. The annual core inflation rate increased by 0.2 percentage points, reaching 2.3%. The general index for May, expressed in a base of 100 in 2015, was 125.66 points. The half-year average of the index linked to the 1.1.1948 base rose from 1015.30 to 1019.75 points. STATEC noted that the next wage indexation will be triggered when the value of 1038.79 is reached.