January 16 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria's consumer prices rose by 16.9% year-on-year in December, increasing at the same annual rate as in November, the statistical office said on Monday.
On a monthly comparison basis, inflation in Bulgaria edged up to 0.9% in December from 0.8% in November, the National Statistical Institute (NSI) said in a monthly report.
The average annual inflation in 2022 was 15.3%.
In December, prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages which have the largest weight in the consumer basket increased the most in annual terms, by 26.1%. Prices in the hospitality sector, restaurants and hotels, rose by 21%, followed by prices of goods and services in housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, with a yearly increase of 19.9%.
In monthly terms, consumer prices in December grew the most in recreation and culture, by 8.5%. Declines were recorded in transport, with 2.3%, and clothing and footwear with 1.2%.
Inflation under the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) was 14.3% in December compared to the same month of 2021 and 0.8% compared to November.
Last week, Bulgaria’s largest lender UniCredit Bulbank projected that the country’s average inflation will abate to 9.7% in 2023, and further decelerate to 4.8% in 2024.