Colombia: Inflation edges down in February
According to the National Department of Administrative Statistics (DANE), consumer prices rose 0.57% over the previous month in February, after a 0.60% month-on-month increase in January. Education costs soared in the month, followed by alcoholic beverages and tobacco, and transport, which saw a more modest upturn in prices. Meanwhile, information and communication was the only category to record a fall in prices and costs for healthcare remained stable from the previous month.
Inflation edged down to 3.0% in February, from 3.2% in January. Thus, it remained within the Central Bank’s target range of 3.0% plus or minus 1.0 percentage points. A stronger peso has helped to push down price pressures. Emerging market currencies have gained ground on the Federal Reserve’s more cautious stance on interest rate hikes.
In January—the latest month for which data is available—core consumer prices—which exclude volatile items including food and fuel—rose 0.5% over the previous month, following a 0.3% month-on-month rise in December. Meanwhile, core inflation inched down to 3.1% in January, from 3.2% in December.