Lower inflation – interest rate cut in sight

Inflation continues to decline. This is shown by the monthly statistics on the rate of price increases that Statistics Norway presented on Friday.

On Friday, Statistics Sweden presented March’s calculations of the rate of price increase in the economy. The statistics show that inflation continues to decline. Compared to March last year, prices measured as CPI were 4.1 percent higher last month. In February, the inflation rate according to the CPI was 4.5 percent compared to the same month in 2023.

– The inflation rate fell in March. Some goods are even cheaper than they were during the same period last year, says Statistics Norway’s price statistician Mikael Nordin.

According to the measure of inflation that is the Riksbank’s target variable for monetary policy, the inflation rate (consumer price index with fixed interest rate, CPIF) was 2.2 percent in March. CPIF excluding energy products (KPIF-XE) decreased from 3.5 percent in February to 2.9 percent in March.

On a month-to-month basis this year, the CPI increased by a modest 0.1 percent from February to March. Last year, the increase between the same months was 0.6 percent.

– No matter how you twist and turn the statistics, it is clear that inflation continues to decline. Everything indicates that the Riksbank will start lowering the key interest rate within the next few months, says Företagarna’s chief economist Johan Grip.