Preliminary inflation figures for June slow to 0,26%. Food and gasoline prices drive down.

247 - The preliminary official inflation rate in the country, measured by the IPCA-15 (National Consumer Price Index 15), slowed to 0,26% in June, after registering 0,36% in May. This is the fourth consecutive drop in the indicator, according to data released this Thursday (26) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). The result was mainly influenced by the drop in prices in the Food and beverages group, which fell 0,02% after nine consecutive months of increase.

The Housing group had the largest positive impact on the overall index, with an increase of 1,08% and a contribution of 0,16 percentage points. Residential electricity was the sub-item with the greatest weight in the month, with a rise of 3,29%, influenced by the adoption of the red tariff flag level 1, which adds R$ 4,46 for every 100 kWh consumed. Adjustments applied in capitals such as Belo Horizonte, Recife, and Salvador also weighed in.

Among the other groups, Clothing rose 0,51%, driven by increases in women's clothing (0,66%) and footwear and accessories (0,49%). The Health and personal care group (0,29%) was influenced by the increase in health plans (0,57%). In Transportation (0,06%), the index was impacted by increases in urban public transport, especially urban buses (1,39%), but offset by the drop in fuels (-0,69%), particularly diesel (-1,74%), ethanol (-1,66%) and gasoline (-0,52%).

In the Food and Beverages group, food consumed at home fell by 0,24%, after rising by 0,30% in May. The main declines were observed in tomatoes (-7,24%), chicken eggs (-6,95%), rice (-3,44%) and fruits (-2,47%). On the other hand, products such as onions (9,54%) and ground coffee (2,86%) saw increases. Food consumed away from home, in turn, rose by 0,55%, slowing down compared to the 0,63% increase in May.

The accumulated index over 12 months stood at 5,27%, below the 5,40% recorded in the previous 12 months. Meanwhile, the IPCA-E — the quarterly version of the IPCA-15 — registered 1,05%, close to the 1,04% observed in the same period last year.

Among the regions surveyed, Recife showed the largest variation (0,66%), influenced by increases in electricity (4,58%) and gasoline (3,44%). Porto Alegre, on the other hand, experienced deflation of 0,10%, driven by the drop in prices of tomatoes (-10,04%) and gasoline (-2,87%).

The IPCA-15 considers families with incomes between 1 and 40 minimum wages and covers 11 metropolitan regions, in addition to Brasília and Goiânia. Prices were collected between May 16 and June 13 and compared to those in effect from April 15 to May 15. The next release of the index, referring to July, is scheduled for the 25th of next month.