Lower inflation due to less expensive fuels | Progresiv

Consumer prices rose by 0.25% in February compared to January, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics. Compared to the figures of the first month of the year, there is a moderation in price increases. In January, compared to December 2019, consumer prices increased by 0.4%.

At the end of February, the increase of only 0.25% is due to non-food items (- 0.06%), as opposed to food products whose prices increased by 0.63% during the indicated period. The highest price increase is for fresh fruits - 3.53%, while vegetables and canned vegetables were 1.79% more expensive at the end of February compared to January and 4.85% more expensive compared December last year.

Prices for pork increased again. The evolution from February compared to January is 0.59%, and compared to December 2019 the increase is 2.38%.

On the production and distribution chain, although the raw material was more expensive, the price reduction in fuels counted, which also influenced the average monthly rate of inflation. INS data show that in February fuels were 1.26% cheaper than in January and 3.23% cheaper than in December 2019.

However, the annual comparison shows significant increases. Consumer prices in February 2020 compared to February 2019 increased by 3.0%, and the average rate of consumer prices in the last 12 months (March 2019 - February 2020) compared to the previous 12 months (March 2018 - February 2019), was 3.8%.

For the whole of 2020, the National Bank of Romania (BNR) speak of a lower inflation rate than previous estimates. According to the BNR, the inflation forecast for this year is 3% compared to 3.1% as was the initial estimate.