VILNIUS - Lithuania completed the cycle of rampant inflation in the Baltic states, announcing on Sept. 10 that consumer prices rose 0.3 percent over the month of August and 5.5 percent year-on-year.
The Statistics Department reported that August prices were nudged up by a 1.9 percent rise in alcohol and tobacco and a 0.8 percent rise in housing and utility costs. Gas and electricity prices surged 11.4 percent over the year and food prices 10.5 percent, the statistics agency said.
The 5.5 percent figure represents the highest level of inflation in nearly a decade and confirms the rising inflationary trend in Lithuania, which over the past five years has been the most adept among the Baltic states at keeping growth of the consumer price index under check. Analysts said that the trend was worrying and that urgent government action was necessary.
"The economy in Lithuania looks a bit more balanced than Estonia and Latvia, but the imbalances in the economy are, nevertheless, large," Danske Bank said in a research note.
Lithuania has a large current account deficit, high credit growth and a low export-to-import ratio, the bank pointed out. "This, along with the inflationary pressures, adds further to the rather unsustainable outlook for the economy," the bank said.
In July annual inflation amounted to 5.1 percent, while in June the figure was 4.4 percent.
