Consumer prices fell 0.29% in June from a month earlier, pushed down by cheaper food items, while the annual inflation eased to 7.93%, after it hit a 33-month high at 8.41% in May.
“I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of an annual inflation below 4% at the beginning of October. The monthly rates are likely to match the one in June in the months to come … owing to what looks like a good agricultural year,” Isarescu told a seminar on inflation.
The central bank targets an annual inflation of 3% at the end of 2011, plus/minus one percentage point around the band. The bank has revised upward its forecast on the year-end inflation to 5.1% from 3.6%, citing upside pressure from surging global prices for energy and food items.