# Introduction to the `hicp`-package
The Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) is the key economic figure to measure inflation in the euro area.
The methodology underlying the HICP is documented in the HICP Methodological Manual ([Eurostat 2024](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-manuals-and-guidelines/w/ks-gq-24-003)).
Based on this manual, the `hicp`-package provides functions to access and work with HICP data (price indices and weights) from Eurostat's public database.
Further details can be found in the package vignette. 

The `hicp`-functions are designed for the use with `R`'s [`data.table`](https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=data.table) package.
