ASUNCIÓN: Annual inflation in Paraguay reached 3.1 percent in 2015 on relatively stable food prices and some increases for imported goods as the local currency depreciated versus the U.S. dollar, the central bank said on Wednesday.
The rise was on the lower end of the central bank’s target of 4.5 percent, plus or minus 2 percentage points. Inflation ended 2014 at 4.2 percent.
“The evolution of food (prices) has been low and that of oil products has been negative. Excluding these two things, we see the effect of the exchange rate on imported tradable goods,” said economist Miguel Mora, chief of economic studies at the central bank.
On a month-on-month basis, Paraguay’s consumer price index rose 0.9 percent in December, fueled by price increases for some food products, such as beef and sugar, and imported durable goods.
The central bank expects Paraguay to post economic growth of 3.2 percent and for inflation to be near the 4.5 center of its target range in 2016. Paraguay is the world’s fourth-largest soybean exporter and an important producer of beef.
