2024.01.1210:51:00UTC+00Hungary Inflation Eases To 5.5%, Lowest In 27 Months

Hungary's inflation eased further in December to the lowest level in more than two years, largely due to a slowdown in food prices, the Hungarian Central Statistical Office said on Friday.

Consumer prices climbed 5.5 percent year-on-year in December, slower than the 7.9 percent rise in November.

Further, the rate was the weakest since September 2021, when inflation stood at the same 5.5 percent.

Nonetheless, inflation continued to remain well above the central bank's target of 2-4 percent.

Core inflation weakened to 7.6 percent from 9.1 percent a month ago. The rate was just below economists' forecast of 7.7 percent.

Food prices rose at a slower pace of 4.8 percent after rising 7.1 percent in November. At the same time, utility costs were 13.9 percent cheaper.

On a monthly comparison, consumer prices dropped 0.3 percent after remaining flat in November.

During the whole year 2023, overall consumer price inflation was 17.6 percent, largely driven by a 25.9 percent surge in food costs.

Separate official data showed that Hungary's industrial production contracted a working-day-adjusted 5.6 percent annually in November, following a 2.9 percent fall a month ago. That was in line with the flash data published earlier.