A woman parks her bike beneath boxes of daffodils on a bridge in Amsterdam, Netherlands 22 April 2017.; Credit: Kevin Coombs / Reuters

Inflation in the Netherlands jumped in September to its highest in decades, driven by skyrocketing energy prices, the statistics agency (CBS) said on Friday 30 September 2022.

Consumer prices, harmonised to be comparable with inflation data from other European Union countries (HICP), rose to 17.1% this month after August's jump to 13.7%.

Energy prices in the euro zone's fifth largest economy were 114% higher than in September 2021, while food prices jumped 10.5%.

Inflation helped drive retail sales up 2% in August, the CBS said, even though sales volumes dropped 6% as consumer confidence has hit an all-time low.

This month, the Dutch government said it would spend about €18 billion next year to help people pay their bills, and also capped the prices of gas and electricity.