The growth rate of consumer prices for the past 12 months was 7.9% in May 2016, a decrease of 0.4 percentage points on a month before and of 0.2 percentage points on May 2015. It thus remained outside upper limit of the interval of ±1.5 percentage points of the inflation target of 5%. The annual rate of inflation continues the downward trend witnessed at the beginning of this year, IPN has learned from the National Bank of Moldova.

These developments confirm the last National Bank’s forecast concerning the gradual diminution of the annual inflation amid modest internal demand, following the April adjustment of the electric power tariffs, the diminution of the prices of food products and energy resources at regional and world levels and owing to the high comparison base of 2015.

The external risks associated with the disinflation pressure are marked by the poor economic activity in the countries of the Eurozone and by the continuous recession in Russia, which are the main external trading partners of Moldova. The potential risks to inflation result also from the increased volatility of international prices of raw material alongside the uncertainty about oil quotations.

As in the previous periods, the annual rise in food prices and basic inflation had the greatest impact on the annual rate of inflation under the influence of the depreciation of the national currency last year and the drought of a year before.