© IMAGO/Martin Wagner
The Planning Bureau has confirmed the exceedance of the central index in March and September 2024 in its latest inflation forecasts. Benefits and civil servant wages will therefore increase twice by 2 percent in 2024.
Source: BELGA
Today at 2:51 PM
As is known, the central index was exceeded last month – before that it was from November 2022 ago. As a result, social benefits will increase this month, followed by the salaries of government employees in December. Next year, benefits are expected to rise by 2 percent in April and October and civil servant wages in May and November.
The Planning Bureau now expects that inflation will average 4.1 percent in 2023, followed by 4 percent in 2024. Last month it was also 4.1 percent this year, but the forecast for 2024 was slightly lower at 3 .9 percent. The figures are certainly much lower than last year: in 2022 there was still 9.59 percent inflation. In 2021 that was 2.44 percent.
It has now become true that inflation would reach a low point in October. As Statbel already communicated, this amounts to 0.36 percent on an annual basis. A month ago, the Planning Bureau had predicted 0.39 percent for October. The forecast for November is also lower: 0.78 percent compared to 1.02 percent in the previous forecast. In December it would now be 1.99 percent.
