SAO PAULO, Sept 25 (Reuters) – Brazil’s mid-September inflation accelerated more than expected, official data showed on Friday, adding to concerns about persistent price pressures as voters head into a tight presidential election and the central bank weighs its next steps after cutting interest rates for a fifth straight meeting.
Annual inflation hit 4.47% in the period, statistics agency IBGE said, up from 4.24% a month earlier and above all forecasts in a Reuters poll of economists, which had a median estimate of 4.30%.
• In the month to mid-September, consumer prices rose 0.70%, reversing a 0.40% decline in mid-August and exceeding the median forecast of 0.53% in the Reuters survey
• Housing costs were the main driver of the monthly increase, rising 2.07% as electricity prices moved higher, while closely-watched food and beverage prices rose 0.4%
• Annual inflation remained within the central bank’s target range of 3%, plus or minus 1.5 percentage points
• The bank lowered the benchmark Selic rate by 25 basis points last week to 13.75%, citing signs of an economic slowdown, and kept its options open ahead of next month’s election
• Inflation has become a central campaign issue as leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva seeks re-election in a tight race against right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro
(Reporting by Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Isabel Teles)
