The annual increase in September is due to a 6.55% rise in non-food prices, a 4.44% advance in food prices and a 2.54% rise in services prices, INS data also show.
The official data slightly exceed analysts’ estimations forecasting, in general, an inflation rate of 4.7%-4.9% in September.
Compared with end-December 2017, prices grew 2.7% in September, with 3.54% growth in prices of non-food items, 1.82% growth in services prices, and 2.07% growth in food prices.
Compared with July, consumer prices inched up 0.47% in September, due to a 0.83% increase in food prices, a 0.32% rise in non-food prices and a 0.26% increase in services prices.
The annual inflation rate calculated based on the harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) stands at 4.7%.
The average inflation rate of the last 12 months (October 2017 – September 2018), compared with the previous 12 months (October 2016 – September 2017), calculated based on the consumer prices index (CPI), stands at 4.5%. The average inflation rate calculated based on the HICP stands at 3.8%.
The monthly average inflation rate was 0.3% in the first nine months of 2018, compared with an average 0.1% in the same period in 2017.