Kazakhstan: Inflation falls to the lowest in over three years
Consumer prices rose 0.3% over the previous month in February, following a 0.5% month-on-month increase in January. The reading reflected higher prices for food, stable prices for non-food items and lower prices for services. Looking at a more detailed breakdown of the sub-components, food and non-alcoholic beverages recorded the biggest upturn in prices, while the cost of housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels declined—the only category to see a drop in prices. Meanwhile, education was the only sub-component to see prices unchanged from the previous month.
Inflation continued to decline in February, falling to 4.8% from 5.2% in January, owing to lower fuel costs. February’s print was the lowest since September 2015. Annual average inflation also fell, inching down to 5.8% in February from 5.9% in January.