Inflation rises in Denmark, Norway, hitting food costs hard

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Annual inflation in Denmark came at 8.7% last month — rising at the fastest pace since 1983 — while the figure in neighboring Norway reached 6.8%, authorities said Wednesday.

Statistics Denmark said the price of goods has increased by an average of 13.2% in the past year, the highest annual increase since February 1982, when the annual increase was the same. Within the goods category, it is to a very large extent price increases on food, electricity, fuel and gas.

In Norway, the July figures marked “a historically high price increase for food and non-alcoholic beverages,” according to Espen Kristiansen of Statistics Norway, saying there had been “an unusually strong rise in food prices.”

Over the year, the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by 10.4%. From June to July this year, they went up by 7.6%, Statistics Norway said.

“We have never previously measured a similar price increase for food from one month to the next,” Kristiansen said.

Denmark is part of the European Union but not part of the 19 countries using the euro currency, while Norway is not an EU member.

Annual inflation in the eurozone rose to a record 8.9% in July.