Inflation accelerates to 0.84% ​​in February above the registered in January

The Extended Consumer Price Index (IPCA), which calculates the country’s official inflation, accelerated to 0.84% ​​in February above the rate recorded in January (0.53%), according to data released this Friday morning ( 10) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) (see full text).

The biggest increase occurred in spending on education, 6.28%, due to the return to school with expenses and readjustment of monthly fees, mainly in secondary, elementary and pre-school education. Health and personal care products also weighed in the month, with an increase of 1.26% driven upwards by personal hygiene items.

Spending on food, more sensitive to the majority of the population, had a smaller change in February compared to January, of 0.16%. In the previous month, the high was 0.59%.

On the other hand, spending on clothing items fell by 0.24%, with a decrease in the prices of men’s and women’s clothing and jewelry.

According to the IBGE, all the capitals registered an upward variation, the biggest being in Curitiba (1.09%), where the result was driven by increases in regular courses (5.97%), gasoline (3.37%) and residential electricity (5.94%). The lowest variation was registered in Rio Branco (0.44%), influenced by the 2.04% drop in residential electricity.

In the accumulated result for the year, the IPCA adds up to 1.37%, and 5.60% in the last 12 months. The index is lower than that registered in the previous period, of 5.77%.