Bulgaria annual CPI records 2% deflation in May
Bulgaria’s consumer price index (CPI) shrank by two per cent year-on-year in May, while the monthly data showed a flat CPI for the second month in a row, according to data released by the National Statistical Institute (NSI) on June 13.
May was the seventh consecutive month of negative or flat monthly growth for Bulgaria’s consumer price index. Over the past 13 months, the monthly CPI recorded growth only once, in October 2015.
Food prices rose by 0.1 per cent in May and non-food prices were 0.3 per cent higher than in April, while services prices fell by 0.3 per cent. In annual terms, food and services prices were 1.7 per cent lower than in May 2015, while non-food prices were down 3.1 per cent.
The harmonised CPI figure, calculated by NSI for comparison with European Union data, was also unchanged on a monthly basis, with the annual harmonised CPI remaining in deflationary territory for the 34th consecutive month, having shrunk by 2.5 per cent compared to May 2015.
Food and beverage prices were 1.5 per cent down, on an annual basis, while the price of utilities and housing has decreased by 1.1 per cent and transportation costs were 9.4 per cent lower compared to a year earlier. The three categories account for about 47 per cent of the harmonised CPI basket.
(Photo: svilen001/sxc.hu)
