Bulgaria’s annual inflation up to 0.9%, despite monthly deflation in May
Bulgaria’s consumer price index (CPI) was up by an annual 0.9 per cent in May, but monthly figures showed 0.2 per cent deflation after three consecutive months of consumer price increases, data from the National Statistical Institute (NSI) showed on June 15.
Food prices shrank by 0.9 per cent in May and service prices were 0.1 per cent lower, while non-food prices rose by 0.5 per cent compared to April. In annual terms, services prices remained the main driver of CPI growth, rising by 3.1 per cent compared to May 2014, and food prices were 1.6 per cent higher, while non-food prices were two per cent lower.
The harmonised CPI figure, calculated by NSI for comparison with European Union data, were flat compared to April, but the annual harmonised CPI remained in deflationary territory for the 22nd consecutive month, having shrunk by 0.3 per cent compared to May 2014.
Food and beverage prices were 1.8 per cent up, on an annual basis, and the price of utilities and rent has increased by 5.1 per cent, while transportation costs were down 6.4 per cent compared to a year earlier. The three categories account for just over half of the harmonised consumer price index.
(Photo: svilen001/sxc.hu)
