Poland: Inflation inches down from over eight-year high in March
Consumer prices increased 0.2% over the previous month in March, following February’s 0.7% jump. The reading largely reflected higher prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages, clothing and footwear and health, more than offsetting lower prices for transport and recreation and culture. Core consumer prices in February (the latest month for which data is available) spiked 0.6% in month-on-month terms, up from January’s 0.1% uptick.
Inflation receded from 4.7% in February, the fastest increase since November 2011, to 4.6% in March, but nevertheless remained well above the upper bound of the Central Bank’s target range of 2.5% plus or minus 1.0 percentage point. For its part, core inflation came in at 3.6% in February (the latest month for which data is available), above January’s 3.1%, logging the highest print since April 2002.
All told, annual average inflation rose from February’s 2.9% to 3.1% in the third month of 2020, the highest reading since February 2013.