MADRID, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Spain's Consumer Price Index (IPC) registered a 1.5 percent rise in December in comparison with the same month in 2015, according to figures published by the Spanish National Institute of Statistics (INE) on Friday.
INE explained that the main cause for the difference was the rise in fuel prices in 2016, while 2015 had seen fuel cost decline.
Meanwhile, consumer prices rose 0.6 percent between November and December this year, meaning that Spain has now seen five consecutive months without any drop in prices, while the 0.6 percent hike in prices is the largest December increase since 2010.
This has had a negative effect on purchasing power, given that the average increase in salaries in Spain was 1.08 percent up until November, while public employees received a 1 percent pay increase and pensions have risen by just 0.25 percent.
