Rio de Janeiro – Buoyed by rising prices of foods, fuels and electricity, Brazil’s official inflation rate, measured by the Extended Consumer Price Index (IPCA), was up 10.67% in 2015, the highest number since 2002, and much higher than both the midpoint (4.5%) and the upper threshold (6.5%) of the Central Bank’s inflation target range.
The new number was released this Friday (8) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Primary factors driving the two-digit inflation rate included electricity prices, at 1.5 percentage point, and fuel prices, at 1.04 percentage point. These two products combined account for 24% of the annual index.
IBGE said that in 2015, consumers paid more for “all categories of goods and services that make up the cost of living,” especially housing-related expenses, which soared 18.31%. Year-on-year, inflation slowed down only for household items.
The survey also shows that the biggest hike in inflation took place in the first quarter, at 3.83%, due to significant increases in urban and inter-municipal bus rates and in power, water and sewage bills. “For the latter two, there were both regular and extraordinary increases.”
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
