K&H: the inflation anomaly is clearly visible, but customers perceive it differently

By: Trademagazin Date: 2024. 05. 01. 13:01

Although inflation has slowed down a lot, according to the recent results of K&H’s secure future survey, middle-aged people do not really perceive this, as they felt the annual rate of money deterioration to be 23 percent on average. This represents a significant difference compared to the official figure of less than 4 percent in February. At the same time, the 30-59 age group is optimistic about the future.

What do Hungarians aged 30-59 think about the evolution of prices that they encounter on a daily basis, for example in shops, department stores or at various service providers? This question was investigated by the K&H Safe Future survey last year and in the first quarter of this year. The results were partly expected and partly surprising.

“It was expected that people’s perception of inflation would decrease compared to a year ago, but in the light of the official data, the decline could have been much stronger. According to our research, 31 percent of respondents felt that inflation was over 40 percent in February 2023, while their proportion dropped to 11 percent in February this year. According to all those interviewed, the average inflation rate in February was around 23 percent, which is significantly lower than the 32 percent observed a year earlier, but for the time being it is still far below the actual figure of less than 4 percent.