France has announced plans to limit energy prices rises to 15% for households from the start of next year, seeking to ease the burden of the energy crisis on consumers.
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire says the caps will cost the government a net $16 billion in 2023, and that prices would have risen by 120% without the limit.
The state will also continue handing over subsidies, with a one-time payment of up to 200 euros each going to 12 million poorer households, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said.
The French government was among the first in Europe to implement measures shielding consumers and companies from a surge in energy prices, starting in October 2021.
Meanwhile, the annual inflation rate in France decreased to 5.8% in August of 2022 from the 37-year high of 6.1% in the previous month.
It was the first time inflation slowed in over one year, as prices decelerated for energy (22.2% vs 28.5% in July) and fresh food (3% vs 5.2%).
Still, the CPI continued to accelerate for manufactured products (3.5% vs 2.7%) and food (7.7% vs 6.8%), while it rose at the same rate for services (at 3.9%).
On a monthly basis, consumer prices increased by 0.4%, picking up from the 0.3% increase in July.
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