Brazil inflation slows to 0.32% in October, below forecasts

Brazil’s IPCA-15 consumer price index increased 0.32% in the month through mid-October, the government statistics agency IBGE reported Friday. The figure represents a decline from the 0.70% rise recorded in the previous month and fell short of the 0.43% increase economists predicted in a poll.

Annual inflation in Latin America’s largest economy reached 4.62% in the 12 months ending mid-October, IBGE said. This marks an increase from the 4.47% rate in the prior month but remains below the 4.73% rise economists had anticipated.

The monthly price increase stemmed from a 0.88% rise in food and beverage costs. Personal expenses climbed 0.55%, while housing costs decreased 0.1%.

The data arrives ahead of a tight presidential runoff between right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, who led the first round, and leftist incumbent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Brazil’s central bank maintains an inflation target of 3%, with a tolerance range of 1.5 percentage points above or below. Policymakers are scheduled to convene on November 3-4 following their fifth straight 25-basis-point interest rate reduction last month, bringing the rate to 13.75%.