Russia: Inflation increases in August
Inflation jumped to 5.1% in August, up from July’s 4.3%. Higher price growth for both foods and non-food goods more than offset cooling services inflation. August’s reading represented the highest inflation rate since February.
That said, the trend pointed down, with annual average inflation coming in at 7.6% in August (July: 8.3%). Meanwhile, core inflation rose to 4.0% in August, from July’s 3.2%.
Finally, consumer prices increased 0.28% in August over the previous month, moderating from the 0.63% rise recorded in July. August’s result marked the weakest reading since October 2022.
Commenting on the inflationary outlook, analysts at EIU said:
“Inflationary pressures will remain strong over this and next year as labour costs, as well as costs of imported components, continue to increase. […] Monetary policy will only have a minimal impact in the short term. […] We have revised our forecast for average annual inflation in 2023-24, from 5.1% to 6.1%.”