Incoming data is more important than ever amid an uncertain outlook as the Swedish central bank seeks to bring inflation back to its 2% target, newly elected Riksbank Governor Erik Thedeen said in a speech on Tuesday.
"We think CPIF will fall but we are not sure by how much
and how fast. The big question is not if it will fall from 10%
to 7% ... but will it come down to 2% or stop at 4%?" he said.
"That is why incoming data is more important than it has
ever been," he added.
Swedish
headline inflation, or CPIF, hit 10.2% in December
, a fresh 30-year high and above analysts expectations, as
electricity prices ran red-hot after Russia's invasion of
Ukraine.
"The inflation is much, much too high," Thedeen said, adding the price increases were damaging to consumers, companies and the broader economy.
Earlier on Tuesday data showed U.S consumer prices
accelerated in January, but the annual increase was the smallest
since late 2021, pointing to a continued slowdown in inflation
and likely keeping the Federal Reserve on a moderate interest
rate hiking path.
Last week the Swedish central bank raised rates by 50 basis
points to 3% and said more hikes were likely to come during
spring in a bid to bring down rampant inflation.
(Reporting by Johan Ahlander; editing by Niklas Pollard)
