Interest rates unlikely to be unduly influenced by minor increase in inflation

The Central Statistical Office (GUS) said inflation rose 0.3% month-on-month in September after a 0.4% drop in August, pushing up the annual rate to 1.3% from 1.2% in August. A sudden jump in food prices was the cause behind the increase. "The inflation rate is in line with our expectations. Now everybody is waiting to see if food prices continue their rebound. Over the last two months they have grown as much as in the same period last year," Jacek Wisniewski from CDM Pekao said. Other analysts believe that this should not affect interest rate decisions made by the Central Bank. Analysts maintain there are no inflationary pressures and only a leap in oil prices could negatively affect this index. Grzegorz Wojtowicz from Monetary Policy Council estimates that annual inflation will rest between 1% to 1.8%. (Reuters, Rzeczpospolita, pp. A1, B1) M.M.