Inflation drops to 0.23% in May and stands at 2.95%, year to date
Brazil´s Broad Consumer Price Index (IPCA), which gauges the country's official inflation, registered a rate of 0.23 percent in May of this year. This figure is lower than both the previous month of April (0.61%) and May 2022 (0.47%).
According to data released by the government´s statistic agency IBGE on Wednesday (Jun. 7), year to date, the IPCA stands at 2.95 percent. Over the past 12 months, the accumulated inflation rate stands at 3.94 percent, which is below the 4.18 percent recorded until April.
The increase in health and personal care expenses had the most significant impact on inflation in May, with a price hike of 0.93 percent. This increase was driven by items such as health insurance (1.20%), personal hygiene products (1.13%), and pharmaceuticals (0.89%).
Price drops
On the other hand, certain articles experienced deflation, contributing to the prevention of higher inflation rates. Transportation (-0.57%) and household items (-0.23%) both recorded price drops.
The transportation sector's behavior was influenced by price decreases in airline tickets (-17.73%) and fuels, including diesel oil (-5.96%), gasoline (-1.93%), and vehicular gas (-1.01%).
Food prices continued to rise (0.16%), albeit at a slower pace than in April (0.71%). This decline can be attributed to lower prices for items such as fruit (-3.48%), soybean oil (-7.11%), and meat (-0.74%).
