In fact, people who travel regularly between Ireland and Continental Europe say this is nothing new. Because Ireland's economy has been booming for the last half-decade, inflation has been much faster there than elsewhere and is expected to be well above 4 percent this year. What is new, however, is the ease in making price comparisons.
The statistical evidence of euro-related price hikes is more ambiguous. Consumer prices did jump by an annual rate of 2.5 percent in January, up from 2.1 percent in December. But economists say most of those price increases appear to be the result of rising food prices, which in turn stemmed from bad weather last fall in Europe.
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