Image: Apa
If you ask the Austrian population, the perceived inflation in the second quarter was even 19.5 percent. The reasons for this difference in inflation rates are varied, as an analysis by the credit insurers Acredia and Allianz Trade shows. “One reason for the difference in inflation is the different shopping baskets,” said Gudrun Meierschitz, CEO at Acredia. “Austria has a strong tourism sector, where investments in higher quality have recently led to a sharp increase in prices. As the tourism sector has almost three times the weight in the basket in Austria than in Germany, this leads to a higher rate of inflation.” But the state support measures would also have an impact: in Germany, for example, fuel discounts, 9-euro and 49-euro tickets pushed the inflation rate down. In Austria, on the other hand, after the end of the reduction in VAT, prices in the catering trade rose sharply.
The low rate of inflation in Switzerland, on the other hand, is due to the strong Swiss franc, according to the documents of the credit insurers. Due to the higher incomes, there is also a different consumer behavior.
One point of the study is perceived inflation: “Consumers, for example, pay more attention to price changes for products that they buy frequently, such as food, beverages or fuel,” says Meierschitz. “When these prices rise above average, people perceive inflation as being much higher,” said the Acredia CEO. However, perceived inflation is also influenced by psychological aspects, demographic and regional differences, and individual consumer behavior.
The perceived inflation of 19.5 percent in the second quarter is twice as high as it actually is. However, the difference between perceived and real inflation plays a major role. Because the perceived inflation influences the actions of consumers and changes their buying behavior.
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