The Extended National Consumer Price Index (IPCA) for May was 0.40% and was 0.18 percentage points higher than the 0.22% rate registered in April. The cumulative index in the year (1.33%) was the lowest for a month of May since the implementation of the Plano Real. The cumulative index in the last 12 months rose to 2.86%, while it recorded 2.76% in the previous 12 months. In May 2017, the rate reached 0.31%. The complete publication and the IPCA support material can be accessed on the right of the page.

The IPCA of May is the first one to incorporate ithe new methodology including the changes of the items manpower for small repairs and domestic worker, as well as the three new areas: Rio Branco/AC, São Luís/MA and Aracaju/SE.

Among the nine groups of products and services surveyed, only Household articles (-0.06%) showed deflation in May. The others, as shown in the table below, ranged between 0.06% in Education and 0.83% in Housing.

The Housing group presented the highest change among the groups of products and services surveyed (0.83%) and gave the largest contribution (0.13 p.p.) to the IPCA. The highlight was electricity, which, after rising 0.99% in April, rose 3.53% in May, corresponding to 0.12 pp in the index of the month. Since May 1, the yellow tariff has been in force, adding a charge of R$0.01 per kwh consumed. In addition, the following areas were subject to tariff increase:

Also in the Housing group, piped gas changed 0.91% due to the 1.87% increase in the tariffs in Rio de Janeiro (1.70%) as of May 1st. The water and sewage (0.27%) was also a highlight, due to the increase of 2.78% in the service in Recife (1.79%) since May 12 and  of 5.12% in Curitiba (2.06%), in force as on May 17.

In the Housing group, manpower for small repairs (-0.10%) began to incorporate the change obtained based on the information from the Continuous National Household Sample Survey (Continuous PNAD), as well as the domestic worker (0.43%), from the group Personal expenses (0.11%). These methodological changes were announced by the IBGE on March 12, through the Technical Notes 02 and 03/2018.

The Food and Beverages group showed a 0.32% increase in May, with the areas ranging from -0.33% in the Metropolitan Area of Fortaleza to 0.81% in Campo Grande. Both food for consumption at home (0.36%) and food away (0.26%) showed price acceleration in May.

In Food at home, on the side of the highs, the highlights are onion (from 19.55% in April to 32.36% in May), potatoes (from -4.31% in April to 17.51 % in May), green vegetables (from 6.46% in April to 4.15% in May) and long-life milk (from 4.94% in April to 2.65% in May). On the side of the drops,  crystal sugar (-3.32%), ground coffee (-2.28%), fruits (-2.08%) and meats (-0.38%) stand out.

The largest individual impacts on the May index came from the Transportation group (0.40%). On the one hand, gasoline with 3.34% of change and 0.15 pp of impact and, on the other, the airfares (-14.71% and -0.05 p.p.). Diesel oil showed a high of 6.16% and 0.01 pp of impact, against the increase of 1.84% of April. On the other hand, ethanol, which registered a drop of 2.73% in April, kept the same trend with prices, on average, 2.80% cheaper and with -0.03 pp of impact.

In the other groups of products and services, health plan (1.06%) stands out in Health and Personal Care (0.57%). In the Household Articles (-0.06%), the highlight was the item TV, sound and information technology (-1.55%).

Until April 2018, the National System of Consumer Price Indices (SNIPC) covered the Metropolitan Areas of Belém, Fortaleza, Recife, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, Vitória, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Curitiba and Porto Alegre, as well as Brasília and the municipalities of Goiânia and Campo Grande. As of May of this year, according to technical note 01/2018, the SNIPC began to incorporate the municipalities of Rio Branco/AC, São Luís/MA and Aracaju/SE. Therefore, the results by area were:

The highest index was with the Metropolitan Area of Salvador (1.11%) due to the 18.45% change in electricity, because of the 16.95% tariff increase, in force since April 22nd, together with the increase in the PIS/COFINS tax rate. The lowest index was in Brasília (0.15%), due to the 13.91% drop in airfares.

The IPCA has been calculated by the IBGE since 1980 and refers to families with an income of one to 40 minimum wages, regardless of the source, and covers 10 Metropolitan Areas, in addition to the municipalities of Aracaju, Brasilia, Campo Grande, Goiânia, Rio Branco and São Luís. For the calculation of the index of the month, the prices collected between April 28 and May 29, 2018 were compared with prices in force between March 30 and April 27, 2018.

INPC changes by 0.43% in May

The National Consumer Price Index (INPC) changed by 0.43% in May and was 0.22 pp above the rate of 0.21% in April. The cumulative index in the year registered 1.12% - its lowest level for a month of May since 2000, when the cumulative index was 0.83%. The cumulative index in the last twelve months was 1.76%, above the 1.69% recorded in the prior 12 months. In May 2017, the INPC had been 0.36%.

Food products increased 0.29% in May, while in the previous month the increase had been 0.11%. Non-food products changed by 0.49%, while in April it had registered 0.25%.

Among the indices by area, the highest index was in Campo Grande (1.12%) due to the 8.90% increase in electricity due to the 10.65% increase, in effect since April 8, coupled with the increase in the PIS/COFINS rate. The lowest index was in Belo Horizonte (0.13%) due to the 1.65% drop in electricity tariffs, given the reduction in the PIS/ COFINS rate, despite the 18.53% tariff increase of May 28. The following table presents the results by area surveyed.

The INPC has been calculated by the IBGE since 1979. It refers to families with monthly income of one to five minimum wages, with a salaried head of the family, and it encompasses ten metropolitan areas in Brazil, besides the municipalities of Aracaju, Brasília, Campo Grande, Goiânia, Rio Branco and São Luís. In order to measure the index of the month the prices collected from April 28 to May 29 of 2018 were compared with the ones from March 30 and April 27 of 2018.