No. 1053 - Anatomy of inflation and consumption choices in Italy after the pandemic

Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional papers)
by Donato Ceci, Francesco Corsello, Marco Fruzzetti and Matteo Izzo
September 2026
Vai alla versione italiana Site Search

This paper examines the factors underlying the sharp rise in inflation in Italy following the pandemic and assesses its impact on household consumption patterns, drawing on granular data on prices and purchased quantities.

From 2021 onward, inflation was driven mainly by supply-side factors, including bottlenecks affecting selected imported products and rising energy prices. Since 2023, demand-side pressures have played a more prominent role. The resulting shifts in relative prices substantially altered the composition of household consumption. Initially, the share of expenditure on essential goods and services - whose consumption is relatively difficult to reduce - increased. Subsequently, as household incomes recovered, spending gradually shifted back toward discretionary goods and services.

Full text

  1. 17 September 2026
    No. 1053 - Anatomy of inflation and consumption choices in Italy after the pandemic
    PDF 3 MB

Sezione di approfondimento