Inflation slows to 8.9% y-o-y in August

Ukraine’s consumer price index growth slowed to 8.9% y-o-y in August, the State Statistics Committee reported yesterday. In m-o-m terms, CPI declined by 0.4%, the second straight month it dropped (vs. -1.3% m-o-m in July). Svetlana Rekrut: The deceleration in CPI stems from food price decreases of 1.2% m-o-m (+8.3% y-o-y vs. +9.6% y-o-y in July due to a seasonal decline related to the new harvest). In August, the fastest growing CPI components were alcohol and tobacco, +1.2% m-o-m and +16.6% y-o-y, respectively. Utility and transport prices grew by 0.5% m-o-m, while y-o-y growth amounted to +12.1% and +21.2%, respectively. The CPI decline in August is fully in line with our expectations as it is historically the lowest growth period of the year. We see inflation accelerating slightly in October-December, with annual CPI at 10.0% y-o-y.