The rise in prices is far from over: ŠOK is waiting for us in January! Households pay more than twice as much for THIS – Topky.sk

Michal Lehut, an analyst at Všeobecná úverová banka (VÚB), stated in a comment that gas prices were expected to rise by 150% in January, while inflation would continue to rise. As consumers, we have not felt it yet, so we are likely to be shocked at the beginning of the year. Archive VIDEO Wages grew at a brisk pace at the beginning of 2022, but in many sectors they were not enough to start inflation. Consumers have not yet seen growth. “Since January, however, there is also a risk that these factors will be accompanied by a rapid increase in natural gas and heat prices. Natural gas on commodity exchanges has more than quadrupled since last year, but regulated consumers have hardly felt it at all,” he said in a comment. Photo gallery (2) However, according to Lehut, this should change in January 2023. It is then that the new regulated prices, which will be decided by the Office for the Regulation of Network Industries this autumn, should enter into force. “The regulatory formula of the Office is based on the market prices of contracts for the Prague Stock Exchange EEX in 2023. There, the price of gas is currently above 91 euros per megawatt-hour, while last June it was only 23 euros,” he wrote. Prices may rise by more than 150% “If prices remained just above 90 euros at the current level until September, according to current Intesa Sanpaolo forecasts, the commodity component of regulated gas prices could rise by about 250% from January. As the commodity makes up according to the formula, the regulated gas price for households could increase by more than 150% of the final gas price (the rest is made up of distribution and other costs plus profit), ”explains Lehuta. Households pay a fair amount of 3.3% in the average household consumption basket, but the prices of heating and hot water (weight 2.8%) also derive directly from it. “If these two items had risen in price by 150% since January 2023, headline inflation would have fallen by a massive five and four, up to nine percentage points, respectively. to the level of 17%, “he said. The government is considering temporarily abolishing VAT on gas or the mentioned heat, but this would reduce the price increase from 150% only to a value close to 108%. “Households would pay extra money anyway, at the latest in advance payments from July 2023. A similarly regulated electricity price is frozen in agreement with the majority producer (Slovenské elektrárne) for 2023 and 2024,” Lehuta added.