Consumer Inflation (CPI) February 2023

Headline consumer inflation accelerated to an annual increase of 7.0 percent in February 2023, increasingly the probability of a further interest rate hike in March 2023. Underlying inflation, headline inflation excluding the impact of regulated, or government controlled, price inflation, increased at a faster pace, from 6.8 percent in January to 7.0 percent. This suggests that higher inflation is becoming deeper entrenched in the economy, and not just a reflection of the impact of higher regulated prices such as international oil prices, energy or water prices. Ex factory prices softened from an annual increase of 13.5 percent in December 2022 to 12.7 percent in January 2023.