Economy 'not in a deflationary spiral' despite continued sharp fall in consumer prices

KBC Bank Ireland chief economist Austin Hughes said Ireland is not in a "deflationary spiral" despite consumer prices falling at their sharpest rate for 10 years last month 

Ireland is not trapped in a deflationary spiral despite consumer prices falling at the sharpest rate in a decade last month, one economist has said.

According to CSO figures, consumer prices fell by 1.2% on a year-on-year basis in September and were down 0.4% on a monthly basis. The annual fall was the sharpest since 2010, and annualised prices have now fallen for six months in a row.