INSTANT VIEW 1-Slovak Dec EU-norm CPI in line with fcasts

    Slovak consumer prices rose 
0.1 percent month-on-month in December, according to EU-norm 
data, putting the annual inflation rate at 3.7 percent, data 
from the Statistics Office showed on Wednesday. 
     
SLOVAK EU-NORM INFLATION       DEC 06   DEC 05   DEC forecast 
  pct change mo/mo             +0.1     +0.1      +0.1 
  pct change yr/yr             +3.7     +3.9      +3.7 
   
  (Details of Dec inflation data ............. [ID:nPRG000203]) 
   
NOTE: 
- Food and non-alcoholic beverages, which have a strong 
weighting in the consumer price basket, rise by 0.3 percent 
month-on-month, after a 0.9 percent rise in November. 
- Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, which 
pushed inflation up early last year, rises by 0.1 percent on the 
month in December, after a 1.6 percent jump in November. 
- Annual price growth in the housing category, which has the 
strongest weighting in the consumer basket, is 13.1 percent up 
after 12.7 percent rise in November. 
- Transportation prices falls by 0.5 percent month-on-month, 
after a 0.6 percent drop in November. 
     
    BACKGROUND: 
 - The central bank follows inflation calculated by the 
EU methodology as a part of Slovakia's plan to adopt the euro in 
2009. 
 - Financial markets follow local-standards inflation more 
closely because it is released earlier and shows only minor 
differences from EU-norm data. Prices under the local 
methodology were flat on the month putting annual rate to 4.2 
percent year-on-year in December. 
 - The central bank expected annual EU-norm inflation at 3.7 
percent in December, above the year-end target of 2.5 percent. 
 - Slovakia wants to meet all criteria for euro adoption in 
2008. The central bank predicts inflation will fall to 2.8 
percent at the end of 2007. 
 - The central bank left the key two-week repo rate unchanged at 
4.75 percent in December. 
     
    LINKS: 
- For further details on December inflation and other past data, 
Reuters 3000 Xtra users can click on the Slovak Statistics 
Office's website: 
    http://wwww.statistics.sk/webdata/english/index2_a.htm 
     
- For LIVE Slovak economic data releases, click on...... 
- Schedule of upcoming indicator releases............ 
- Summary of short-term economic data forecasts...... 
- Stories on Slovak currency moves........................[SKK/] 
- Slovak speed money guide ................................ 
- Slovak benchmark state bond prices ................. 
- Slovak forward money market rates .................... 
 
 

[BRATISLAVA/Reuters/Finance.cz]