OECD annual inflation stable at 0.8% in May 2016
Annual inflation in the OECD area remained at 0.8% in May 2016 for the third consecutive month. Excluding food and energy, annual inflation increased slightly to 1.9 % in May 2016, compared with 1.8 % in April. Food price inflation slowed, to 0.1% in May, compared with 0.4 % in April. Energy prices fell (by -8.1% ), marginally faster than the -7.8 % decline in April
In Latvia, which became a new OECD Member country on 1 July 2016, annual inflation was stable at -0.8 % in May.
Annual inflation decreased in Canada (to 1.5 %, in May, down from 1.7 % in April), the United States (to 1.0 %, down from 1.1 %) and Japan (to -0.4 %, down from -0.3 %). Inflation was stable in the United Kingdom (at 0.3 %) and increased in Germany (0.1 %, up from -0.1 %), France (0.0 %, up from -0.2 %) and Italy (-0.3 %, up from -0.5%).
Euro Area annual inflation, as measured by the HICP, stood at -0.1 % in May, compared with -0.2 % in April. Excluding food and energy, Euro area annual inflation increased to 0.8 %, compared with 0.7 % in April. Eurostat’s flash estimate for the Euro area in June 2016 points to a further pick up in annual inflation (to 0.1 %).
Annual inflation in the G20 area was stable at 2.3 % in May for the third consecutive month. Among non-OECD countries, annual inflation was stable in Brazil (at 9.3 %), the Russian Federation (at 7.3 %) and South Africa (at 6.5 %). It decreased in Indonesia (to 3.3 %, down from 3.6 %), China (to 2.0 %, down from 2.3 %) and Saudi Arabia (to 4.1 %, down from 4.2 %). On the other hand, annual inflation increased in India (to 6.6 %, up from 5.9 %).