Inflation falls to 9.9% in November, or 6.8% excluding energy prices

Inflation calculated according to Dutch methods dipped just under 10% in November, national statistics agency CBS said on Thursday. The reduction, the agency said, is due to falling energy prices.

Calculated without energy price developments, inflation was 6.8% last month and 6.9% in October, the agency said.

The CBS includes the price of new rather than current energy contracts (gas, electricity and city heating) in its calculations which distort the realistic figure and is currently working on a new method of including them.

Food prices also rose sharply in November. The cost of an average basket of groceries is now 15.7% higher than a year ago, compared with 14% in October. Bread and other grain-based products, meat and dairy are all up considerably in price, the CBS said.

In October, inflation when calculated according to Dutch methods, had fallen to 14.3%.

In European terms, which exclude the impact of rental property, inflation fell to 11.2% in November.