Red tariff flag in electricity accelerates inflation in October
November 10, 2017 09h00 AM | Last Updated: November 10, 2017 10h48 AM
Influenced by the average increase of 3.28% in electricity, inflation rose from 0.16% in September to 0.42% in October. The introduction of the red tariff flag this month contributed to accelerate the Extended National Consumer Price Index - IPCA, released this morning by the IBGE. On the other hand, the cumulative rate in the year (2.21%) was the lowest for this period of the year since 1998. The index registers a cumulative rise of 2.70% in the last 12 months.
The increase in the prices of electricity (3.28%) and bottled gas (4.49%), which was adjusted by 12.9% in the refinery, caused Housing to show the highest inflation (1.33%) among the groups, being responsible for nearly half of the month´s index (0.21 percentage points).
José Fernando Gonçalves, analyst of the survey, stated that the change from the yellow tariff flag to the red one caused the inflation to accelerate in October. He highlighted: "The red tariff flag will remain in force next month, though the price of electricity will change from R$3.50 to R$5.00 per 100 kWh", increasing the pressure on the energy prices.
The group of food products (-0.05%) dropped for the sixth month in a row, though less intense than that reported in September (-0.41%). Deflation was due to the 0.74% reduction in the average price of food for consumption at home, like in brown beans (-18.41%), garlic (-7.69%) and crystallized sugar (-3.05%), among other products. On its turn, food away from home rose 0.16%.
Text: Adriana Saraiva
Artwork: Helena Pontes
Image: Licia Rubinstein
