The annual inflation rate, which measures the evolution of consumer prices in the last year, reached 5.2% in April, the highest level since June 2013, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INS).

The inflation rate has been going up every month this year, from 4.32% in January to 4.72% in February and 5% in March.

The prices of food products went up by 4% in April over the same month in 2017, on average, while the prices of non-food products increased by 7.2% year-on-year. Meanwhile, the services got 2.83% more expensive.

Compared to March, the highest price increases were registered in April for fresh fruits – up 2.66%, tobacco and cigarettes – 2.4%, and fuels – 1.63%. When compared to the same month of 2017, the biggest price hikes were reported for fresh fruits – 13.91%, citrus fruits – 11.32% and natural gas – 10.19%.

Romania’s National Bank (BNR) has increased recently its annual inflation forecast for the end of this year, from 3.5% per year to 3.6%.

Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com