Brazil's plunging inflation fuels rate cut bets

Consumer prices rose less than expected in Brazil in January for the fifth straight month, increasing the chances of steeper interest rate cuts and a stronger economic recovery as the inflation rate falls toward the government's long-missed target. The annual inflation rate eased by nearly a percentage point to 5.35 percent in the 12 months through January, below economists' expectations of 5.41 percent, government statistics agency IBGE said on Wednesday.