August 9 (SeeNews) - Moldova's central bank said on Tuesday it increased its 2022 inflation projection to 29.5% from 27.3% forecast in May, due to the economic impact of the war in Ukraine.
Over the next period, the upward trajectory of the annual CPI rate will continue in the context of rising prices of food, other commodities and energy in the regional market, amplified by the conflict in Ukraine, the central bank, BNM, said in its August inflation report.
The BNM expects the annual inflation rate to increase until the third quarter of this year, after which it will follow a downward path towards the end of the forecast horizon.
In 2023, inflation is expected to slow to 15.7%, the BNM said.
Moldova's consumer prices rose to a new 23-year high of 31.83% year-on-year in June, compared to an increase of 29.05% in the previous month, according to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics.
On August 5, BNM decided to raise its policy rate to 21.5% from 18.5% in order to temper the rise in consumer prices and to mitigate risks stemming from the war in Ukraine.
(1 euro =19.6751 Moldovan lei)