BANGKOK, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's headline inflation rate dropped for a fifth successive month in August, driven by declining food and energy prices, official data showed on Thursday.
The Southeast Asian country's consumer price index (CPI) fell 0.79 percent last month compared to the same period a year earlier, slightly accelerating from a 0.70 percent decrease in July and marking the steepest decline in sequence, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
The August reading came in below the central bank's target range of 1 percent to 3 percent for the sixth consecutive month.
The drop was mainly attributed to reduced prices of fresh food items due to rising market supply, a decline in fuel prices, coupled with lower electricity charges on the back of the government's cost-of-living relief measures, the ministry said in a statement.
Core CPI, which excludes raw food and energy prices, rose 0.81 percent year-on-year in August, edging down from a 0.84 percent increase in the previous month and indicating the softest growth in eight months.
For the first eight months of 2025, the headline CPI grew 0.08 percent compared to the same period last year.
The ministry maintained its headline inflation forecast to range between zero percent and 1 percent this year. ■