New figures from Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reveal the national rate of inflation was 5,7 percent in December 2021, bringing the annual figure to a staggering 2,7 percent.

Dutch inflation rate was 2,7 percent in 2021

According to the Dutch statistics office, prices in the Netherlands last month were 5,7 percent higher than a year earlier, breaking the record set in November and marking the highest inflation rate the Netherlands has seen in 40 years. Using the most recent data, CBS has also calculated the national inflation rate for 2021, reporting that goods and services were 2,7 percent more expensive in 2021 than in 2020.

Last week, CBS and the European statistics office Eurostat reported that inflation in the Netherlands reached 6,4 percent last month. While the data published by CBS on Tuesday morning reports a slightly lower figure for December, it is important to note that CBS and Eurostat use two different methods in order to calculate the rate of inflation.

Energy prices drive up cost of living in the Netherlands

CBS attributes this significant price increase to the ongoing energy crisis, as well as the rising cost of food. Last month, gas and electricity were 74,9 percent more expensive than in December 2020, while food prices had risen by 2,6 percent over the course of the year.

While prices across the country continue to rise, CBS notes that prices in certain sectors helped to keep the national inflation rate under control. In the holiday and tourism industry, for example, the cost of accommodation was 7,1 percent lower at the end of 2021 than it was at the end of 2020.