07/20/2018 | 08:46am EDT
BRASILIA--Inflation in Brazil accelerated in the 12 months through mid-July fueled by transportation and utility prices, reaching the central bank target for the first time since March 2017.
The IPCA-15 consumer-price index rose 4.53% in the 12 months through the middle of this month, from 3.68% in the year ended mid-June, the IBGE statistics agency said Friday.
Brazil's central bank targeted 4.5% inflation for 2018. The IPCA-15 has been below that mark ever since it reached 4.73% in March last year. Since October 2016 the bank has been cutting rates to a historic low of 6.5% as inflation weakened.
The IPCA-15 index rose 0.64% in the month through mid-July, after rising 1.11% in the month before, a period in which a nationwide truckers strike in late May halted deliveries, driving up retail prices.
The price of airplane tickets rose 45.5% in the latest period, the IBGE said, while electricity prices rose 6.77%.