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Downward trend in legal-sector charges – CSO

Prices for services charged in the legal, accountancy, public relations (PR) and consultancy sectors in the second quarter of this year were 1.5% higher than in the same period last year, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

Overall, the figures show that prices charged by service providers across the economy rose at an annual rate of 1.7% in the three-month period.

The annual increase was the lowest for two years. Service inflation has been on a downward trend since hitting 4.1% in the first quarter of 2022.

Increases had hit 3%      

Price increases in the category that includes legal services have been on a similar trend, as annual increases of 3% or more were recorded throughout 2022.

The CSO figures show that prices for legal, accountancy, PR and consultancy services dropped by 0.4% compared with the first quarter of 2023 – the first fall since late 2020.