Inflation in April was slightly higher than predicted, said analysts on May 13 after the Statistics Office released figures showing that consumer prices rose by 4.3 percent year-on-year last month. The analysts noted that they were expecting a figure of between 4.1 and 4.2 percent.
"Food prices were solely behind the fact that (price) growth exceeded our expectations and the market's," said VÚB analyst Martin Leško. ČSOB Bank analyst Silvia Čechovičová believes that inflation will continue to accelerate in the short term as a result of rising food prices and the impact of increasingly expensive crude oil on motor fuels, the TASR newswire wrote.
"We're facing a peak in inflation in the summer months, when mark-ups of tobacco products will be reflected in the statistics," she said, adding that she therefore can't see inflation falling below 4 percent until late 2008.
Slovenská Sporiteľňa analyst Mária Valachyová sees continued risks of increasing inflation in possible food-price developments. She expects the aforementioned figure calculated according to domestic methodology to be followed by an EU-harmonised level of between 3.6 and 3.7 percent on May 15.
"The 12-month average of harmonised inflation is likely to rise from 2.2 percent in March to 2.4 percent, which, however, remains well below the Maastricht (criterion) threshold," she said. TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
