THE RATE of inflation in Slovakia grew by 0.3 percentage point month-on-month in October to reach an annual rate of 3.5 percent, Slovakia’s Statistics Office announced on its website on November 15. It also noted that the year-on-year increase in consumer prices as measured by the EU-harmonised index of consumer prices was 4.6 percent.
Prices increased in nearly all measured areas with clothing and footwear posting one of the largest increases, followed by health-care costs and housing.
Prices for alcoholic beverages and tobacco decreased slightly.
Analysts at the National Bank of Slovakia (NBS), the country’s central bank, stated that they expect the EU-harmonised inflation rate in November to remain at the same level as in October, the TASR newswire wrote, even though price increases are expected for various kinds of transport, particularly railway fares, and in the price for heat for buildings.
However, the NBS said these rises will be counterbalanced by a slowdown in the increase of prices for foodstuffs due to lower prices for agricultural commodities.
The NBS added that further consumer price increases could be curbed by a slowdown in economic activity, resulting in a drop in demand, TASR wrote.
