Mexico's headline inflation ticks up in December; core rate softens
(Reuters) — Mexico's headline inflation accelerated for the second month in a row in December, while the closely watched core rate maintained its downward trend, official data showed on Tuesday.
Annual headline inflation in Latin America's second-largest economy hit 4.66% in December, statistics agency INEGI said, overshooting the 4.55% expected by economists polled by Reuters and up from 4.32% in the previous month.
However, core inflation, which strips out some highly volatile energy and food prices, posted its 11th consecutive monthly downtick, with the annual rate hitting its lowest level since September 2021 at 5.09%.
During the month, core prices rose 0.44%, up from the 0.26% increase seen last month, while the headline index was up 0.71%, also above the 0.64% reported in November.
Mexico's central bank, also referred to as Banxico, has maintained a «slightly hawkish» posture in its monetary policy.
It intends to sustain its key interest rate at a record peak of 11.25% for a while, as it waits for inflation to go back to the target of 3%, plus or minus one percentage point.
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