The figures indicate that inflation, the rate at which prices rise, edged up slightly from November 2023, when the annual rate stood at 1%.

A rise in food and drink costs contributed to a 3.7% increase in restaurant and hotel prices over the year.

Excluding energy and unprocessed food, the consumer price index grew by 2.1% in the 12 months leading up to December 2024.

Recreation and culture saw the second-largest annual increase, rising by 3.3%.

The only categories that recorded a decline compared to December 2023 were clothing and footwear (-8%) and furnishings, household equipment, and routine household maintenance (-1.3%).

In terms of monthly changes, the largest increases were seen in transport (+4.1%) and recreation and culture (+3.0%).

Alcoholic beverages and tobacco (-0.9%) and communications (-0.2%) were the only categories to show a decline for the month.

Commenting on the annual changes, Anthony Dawson, a CSO statistician in the prices division, stated: “The release of the CPI shows that prices for consumer goods and services in December 2024 rose by an average of 1.4% compared to December 2023.”

The CSO also published the National Average Prices for selected goods and services for December 2024.

Dawson noted that price increases were recorded for a pound of butter (+60c), two litres of full-fat milk (+18c), a 2.5kg bag of potatoes (+16c), Irish cheddar per kg (+14c), and spaghetti per 500g (+3c).

Meanwhile, the price of an 800g loaf of white sliced pan and an 800g loaf of brown sliced pan both decreased by 1c compared to December 2023.