The Extended National Consumer Price Index 15 (IPCA-15) changed by 0.13% in August, being 0.51 percentage points below the July rate (0.64%). That is the lowest rate for a month of August since 2010 (-0.05%). The cumulative index in the year was 3.14%. Considering the last twelve months, the index stayed at 4.30%, below the 4.53% recorded in the previous twelve months. In August 2017, the rate was 0.35%.

The groups Housing (1.10%) and Health and personal care (0.55%) accounted for the main positive impacts in August, having accounted for 0.17 and 0.07 percentage points, respectively.  On the other hand, Transportation (-0.87%) was responsible for the lowest impact on the index, -0.16 percentage points.   

The main contribution to the group Housing (1.10%) came from the item electricity (3.59%) which represents the main individual impact on the index this month, with 0.14 percentage points. The main highlights are the readjustment of 15.84% in one of the concessionaires surveyed in São Paulo (7.84%), in effect since July 4, and the average readjustment registered of 12% in Belém (0.72%), in effect since August 7th.

Also in the group Housing, the item water and sewage rate recorded a hike of 0.62%, due to the raise of prices in the following areas: Rio de Janeiro (2.41%), 5.94% on August 1st; Belo Horizonte (1.50%), 4.31% on August 1st; Goiânia (1.99%), 3.37% on July 1st; Porto Alegre (0.62%), 2.15% on July 1st.  The hike of piped gas (0.53%), which also belongs to Housing, reflects the readjustment of 2.52% in the fares of Rio de Janeiro (1.02%), on August 1^st.

In Health and personal care (0.55%) the hike was due to the item health insurance (0.81%), which reflects the readjustment of 10.00% granted, on June 27, by the National Regulatory Agency for Private Health Insurance and Plans (ANS) with retroactive effect from May and applied to new health insurance contracts (from 1999 onwards). In addition to that, another highlight was the item personal hygiene (with a change from -0.57% in July to 1.20% in August).

The group food products, which accounts for about 1/4 of the household expenditure, had recorded an increase of 0.61% in July and, in August, a decrease of 0.03%, mainly due to food at home (-0.43%) following the fall of prices of some important items: onion (-29.72%), tomato (-16.41%) and potato (-15.49%). Also, meat, which had recorded a hike of 1.0% in July, fell by 1.39%, and fruits (-1.97%) recorded a decrease for the second month in a row, although at a lower rate than in the previous month (-5.24%).

With the highest results, the highlights are: long -life milk (3.58% and 0.04 percentage points of contribution), rice (2.11%) and French bread (1.34%). Food away from home (0.84%) accelerated against the July result (0.38%), the main highlights being snacks (1.63%) and meals (0.67%).

Transportation, which had accounted for the second main positive result in July, had the second positive change, with a deflation of 0.87% in August, due to the decrease in the item air fares (-26.01%), the main negative contribution to the index this month (-0.10 percentage points). Fuels (-1.32%) recorded a decrease for the second month in a row, with fall of the average prices of ethanol (-5.80%), diesel (-0.50%) and gasoline (-0.40%). The biggest positive change in the group came from interstate buses (4.64%), due to the average readjustment in bus fares in effect since July 02 (10.14%).

The other groups and services surveyed stayed between -0.39%, from Wearing apparel and 0.54%, from Household articles.

Regarding regional indexes, all the eleven areas surveyed decelerated from one month to the other, in a similar movement as from June to July.  In addition to that, five areas recorded deflation in August. The metropolitan area of Curitiba (-0.26%) accounted for the lowest result due to the decrease in the item air fares (-27.63%). The biggest result was that of the metropolitan area of São Paulo (0.44%), due to the readjustment of 15.84% in the fares of electricity (7.84%) in one of the concessionaires  surveyed, on July 4th.

In order to estimate IPCA-15, the prices collected from July 13 to August 13 (reference) were compared with the ones in force from June 14 to July 12 (base). The indicator refers to families with monthly income of 1 to 40 minimum wages and it encompasses the metropolitan areas of Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre, Belo Horizonte, Recife, São Paulo, Belém, Fortaleza, Salvador, Curitiba, as well as Brasília and Goiânia. The methodology is the same as the one used for the IPCA; the difference lies in the period of price collection and in the geographic coverage.