STOCKHOLM: Headline inflation in Sweden dipped further below the central bank's 2 percent target in March, data showed on Thursday, adding to pressure on Riksbank policy makers to push back a rate hike planned for the second half of this year.
Consumer prices measured with a fixed interest rate (CPIF) rose 0.2 percent in March from the previous month and were up 1.8 percent from the same month last year, the statistics office (SCB) said.
CPI inflation was 0.2 percent on the month and 1.9 percent on the year.
Analysts in a Reuters poll had forecast CPIF inflation at an annual 1.8 percent and 0.1 percent on the month. The Riksbank forecast headline inflation (CPIF) of 2.3 percent on the year.
The central bank hiked its benchmark repo rate to -0.25 percent in December last year, arguing that after years of high growth and stable, on-target inflation, it was time to tighten policy.
It forecast another hike later this year.
But a global slowdown, dovish central banks around the world and weak domestic inflation pressure could yet stymie those plans.
Headline inflation undershot the Riksbank's expectations in January and February, though both results were close to the 2 percent target.
The central bank publishes its next policy decision on April 25.
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