The inflation increase in June was fueled by higher non-food product and service prices, that were both up 0.4% compared with May. Food prices fell 0.2% on the month in June.
The highest increase in the non-food products category was posted by the fuel prices, which rose 2.14% on the month.
The service price hikes were fueled by the leu depreciation against the euro in June by more than 1%. Therefore, some service prices that are linked to the euro, such as for telephony services or air transport, were up by more than 1% compared with May.
At the end of May, the annual inflation rate was at 5.95%.
The harmonized index of consumer prices, or HICP, stood at 7% at the end of June.
Compared with the end of 2008, the consumer price index was up 3.14% in June. In the first six months, service prices rose 4.76%, non-food prices were 4.14% higher, while the food prices grew by just 1.22%.
The annual inflation in each quarter is a performance criteria included in Romania’s EUR13 billion stand-by agreement with the International Monetary Fund. Thus, at the end of June, the annual inflation had to rank at 6.4%, with one percentage point variation band. By December, the annual inflation rate must come down to 4.5%.
Romania’s central bank estimates the annual inflation rate will be at 4.4% in December.