Summary
In June, the consumer confidence indicator stabilized in the Euro Area (EA) and slightly decreased for the second consecutive month in the European Union (EU27). In the same month, the raw materials and the oil prices continued to register strong year-on-year growth rates, although less significant than the ones observed in the previous months.
In Portugal, the economic climate indicator slightly increased in June, lengthening the upward path observed since May 2009. The economic activity indicator, available until May, maintained the strong upward movement started in August 2009, attaining the highest value since April 2008. The private consumption indicator increased again in May, although only slightly, recording the maximum value since August 1999, due to the positive contribution of both components, non-durable and durable consumption. In the same month, the GFCF indicator diminished less intensely, driven by the evolution of the construction and transport material components. Concerning the international trade of goods, the nominal imports and exports continued to present significant year-on-year growths in May, shifting from 12.2% and 17.6% in April to 13.1% and 18.4%, respectively.
In June, the year-on-year change rate of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 1.2%, 0.1 p.p. higher than the observed in the previous month. Excluding energy and unprocessed food products, the year-on-year change rate was 0.2% (-0.1% in May), recording the first positive change rate since August 2009. In June the prices in the goods and services components registered growth rates of 1.5% and 0.7% (1.2% and 0.8% in May, respectively). The differential between the EA Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) and the Portuguese HICP diminished 0.2 p.p. in June comparing with the previous month, to -0.3 p.p..