BANGKOK, April 5 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's headline inflation dropped for the sixth consecutive month in March due to lower fresh food prices from increased market supply and last year's high comparative base, official data showed on Friday.
The consumer price index (CPI) inched down 0.47 percent in March from a year earlier, easing from a 0.77 percent decrease in February, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
The March inflation was below the Bank of Thailand's target range of 1-3 percent for the 11th month.
The core CPI, which excludes raw food and energy prices, rose 0.37 percent in March, compared to 0.43 percent in the previous month.
For the first three months of 2024, the headline CPI declined by 0.79 percent compared to the same period last year, said Poonpong Naiyanapakorn, director general of the ministry's Trade Policy and Strategy Office.
Headline inflation is expected to increase in the second quarter of this year, mainly owing to the rising trend of prices for global crude oil, Thai baht depreciation, and last year's lower base price for electricity, Poonpong told a news conference.
He also noted that the ministry revised its headline CPI projection for 2024 to 0-1 percent, from between minus 0.3 percent and 1.7 percent expected earlier. ■
