In February 2018, the annual rate of inflation as measured by the Retail Price Index (RPI) was registered at 0.98 per cent, up from 0.87 per cent in January 2018, the NSO said today.

The twelve-month moving average rate for February decreased to 1.24 per cent, from 1.30 per cent in the previous months.

The largest upward impact on annual inflation was recorded in the Food Index (0.32 percentage points), mainly reflecting higher prices of restaurant services and the like (including take-aways and cafeterias). The largest downward impact was recorded in the Clothing and Footwear Index (-0.21 percentage points), attributed to lower prices of garments.

The Food Index registered an overall annual inflation rate of 1.50 per cent, of which Food excluding restaurant services and take-aways registered an annual rate of 0.68 per cent, while Restaurant services and take-aways registered an annual rate of 3.74 per cent.