Inflation in Bulgaria to peak in H1, fall by end-2022 - c-bank governor
The Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) expects the rising inflation rate in the country to peak on an annual comparison basis in the first half of 2022, BNB Governor Dimitar Radev said.
At the end of the year, inflation is expected to drop below the rate of price increase recorded in December 2021, Radev said in an article published in the January 2022 newsletter of the Association of Banks in Bulgaria.
The specific nominal levels of the general consumer price index will depend on both anti-inflationary and pro-inflationary factors, among which the dynamics of global energy prices and food prices, Radev said.
Finance minister Assen Vassilev said on Monday that the government expects average annual inflation of 5 to 8% for 2022.
Last week, the National Statistical Institute said that Bulgaria's consumer prices rose by 7.8% year-on-year in December following an annual increase of 7.3% in November. The average annual inflation rate in 2021 was 3.3%.