BRASILIA: Brazilian consumer inflation rose above 6% in the month to mid-April for the first time in more than four years, statistics agency IBGE said on Tuesday, once again driven by rising transportation costs.

The IPCA-15 annual price index rose to 6.17% from 5.52% the month before, almost exactly in line with the 6.25% median forecast in a Reuters poll of economists. It was the highest since December 2016, IBGE figures showed.

On a monthly basis, mid-month consumer price inflation in April slowed to 0.6% from 0.93% the month before, slightly below the Reuters poll forecast of 0.68%.

The figures suggest inflation pressures in Brazil remain strong, stoked by a weak exchange rate and fragile public finances. Economists expect the central bank to raise interest rates aggressively for a second time when it meets next week.

Prices rose in seven of the nine groups of goods and services covered by IBGE. Transport costs, including fuel, rose 1.76% in the month, accounting for more than half of the overall monthly increase, IBGE said.

Within that segment, fuel prices rose 4.9% on the month, less than half the rate of the previous month. Gas prices rose 5.5%, again around half the rate of the previous month but the 10th consecutive increase.

Food and drink prices rose 0.36% on the month, accounting for 0.08 percentage points of the 0.6% overall rise, IBGE said.