The rising costs of energy and public services account for almost the entire current rate of inflation, according to data released yesterday by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The CSO's latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) - which tracks movements in the prices of a basket of commonly purchased goods and services - shows the annual rate of price increases fell slightly, from 2.4 per cent in July to 2.3 per cent in August. But the price of goods increased by only 0.8 per cent year-on-year and this was accounted for by increases in the cost of energy products, driven in turn by rising oil prices.

In contrast, inflation for the services sector was 3.5 per cent, mainly as a result of the rising cost of public services.

A more detailed breakdown of inflation shows that prices in housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels rose by 10.5 per cent year-on-year. Some 1.3 percentage points, or approximately three-fifths, of the 2.3 percentage points rise in the overall CPI prices increase was accounted for by price developments in this category.

The two main contributors to this were an increase of 12.5 per cent in energy products reflecting rising oil prices, and an increase of 8.9 per cent in utility and local authority charges.

The cost of education and health services rose by 6.8 per cent and 6.6 per cent respectively. By contrast prices are decreasing across a range of goods. The prices of clothing and footwear products fell by 2.7 per cent, while price falls were also seen for furniture products, household goods, food and recreation services.

A detailed breakdown of the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) index, a measure that is comparable with those of other EU states, shows that inflation in health, education and in housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels remains significantly higher in Ireland than in the EU as a whole.