By Jamie McGeever
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Annual consumer price inflation in Brazil rose to 4.9% in April, government statistics agency IBGE said on Friday, the highest in over two years and further above the central bank's end-year target of 4.25%.
It is the highest since January 2017, but policymakers may draw comfort from the fact that it didn't hit 5.00%, as was predicted in a Reuters poll of economists. The monthly rate of inflation eased and was also slower than expected.
Consumer prices were 0.57% higher in April from March, IBGE said, but below forecasts of 0.63% and down from 0.75% the month before.
Accumulated inflation in the first four months of the year was 2.09%, the highest for this particular period since 2016.
Prices were driven up by food and drink rising 0.63% on the month, transport climbing 0.94% and health and personal care goods increasing 1.51%, IBGE said. The only sector to register deflation in April was household goods, down 0.24%.
Among the notable increases, perfumes jumped 6.56% in April from March, airline tickets rose 5.32% and gasoline was up 2.66%, on average.
Brazil's central bank earlier this week left interest rates on hold at a record low 6.50%, opting to look past the current strength in inflation to highlight the general and broad-based weakness of the economy.
Policymakers have said they think inflation will peak around April or May and then drift back toward their 4.25% target by the end of the year.