Poland's consumer price inflation eased to the lowest level in seven months amid a sharp slowdown in transport costs, though it remained strong overall, preliminary data from Statistics Poland showed on Friday.
The consumer price index climbed 16.1 percent year-over-year in March, following an 18.4 percent rise in February. Economists had expected a rate of 16.2 percent.
The annual growth in transport charges eased markedly to 3.9 percent in March from 23.7 percent in the previous month.
Prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages grew the most by 24.0 percent annually in March. This was closely followed by a 19.6 percent spike in costs of electricity, gas, and other fuels.
On a monthly basis, consumer prices moved up 1.1 percent in March versus a 1.2 percent increase in January. That was in line with expectations.
