Ukraine consumer prices drop 0.1% m/m in August
11 September 2017
Ukraine’s consumer prices dropped 0.1% m/m in August (while
growing 16.2% yoy) owing to food prices, the State Statistics Service reported
on Sept. 8. A month ago, July CPI increased 0.2% m/m (15.9% yoy growth). For
8M17, consumers inflation reached 8.1% YTD.
In August, food prices dropped 0.6% m/m (0.3% m/m
growth in July) on the back of sliding prices for vegetables (-21.5% m/m) and
fruits (-5.7% m/m). Utility prices eased to 0.3% m/m growth vs. 0.6% m/m in the
prior month. Healthcare prices also slowed to 0.2% m/m growth vs. 0.5% m/m in
July. Prices for clothing and footwear kept on falling (-2.4% m/m vs. -4.4% m/m
in July). Transportation prices sped up to 0.8% m/m growth from no growth
in the prior month. Education prices inched up by 0.1% m/m vs. flat prices in
July.
Alexander Paraschiy: August CPI
was a bit strange since, subjectively, we did not observe declining prices for
fruits and vegetables in supermarkets (we expected 0.2% growth in August). In
September, we anticipate traditional inflation speeding up amid seasonally
strengthening food prices. So we’re not changing our initial CPI forecast of
11.8% YTD, or 14.0% yoy for 2017.
about the 2017 central bank inflation forecast of 9.1% growth YTD. This target
could be reached if CPI grows no more than 0.3% on average per month through
September-December, which is very unlikely amid rising food prices at the
global markets.
