Romania’s annual inflation rate climbs to 5.41% in May

The annual inflation rate, which measures the evolution of consumer prices in the last year, went up to 5.41% in May this year, the highest level since February 2013, according to recent data from the National Statistics Institute (INS). The inflation rate increased from 4.32% in January 2018 to 5.2% in April and 5.41% in May. Food prices went up by 3.93% year-on-year in May 2018, on average, while the prices of non-food products increased by 7.75% and the services got 2.72% more expensive. Compared to December 2017, the biggest price increases were registered for potatoes – up 18.56%, fresh fruits – 18.37%, other vegetables and canned vegetables – 17.47% and natural gas – 10.43%. Romania’s National Bank (BNR) has increased its annual inflation forecast for the end of this year, from 3.5% per year to 3.6%. Eurostat: Romania had highest annual inflation rate in the EU in April Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com