And indeed, the war has caused a huge surge in prices, above all for energy, thereby significantly stoking price dynamics in general. But that is not the only reason for the high levels of inflation, not by a long way. Even before the outbreak of the war, price pressures had intensified considerably.
For example, the rate of inflation in Germany, as measured by the HICP (Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices), had already been sitting above 4% since September 2021. On an annual average, the HICP (Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices) rate stood at 3.2% in 2021. In February 2022, it had already reached 5.5%.