Indonesia’s inflation rises in August

JAKARTA—Inflation in Indonesia accelerated in August due partly to higher gold, food and transport prices in the Muslim holy month, the Central Statistics Agency said Monday.

Annual inflation grew to 4.79 percent in August from 4.61 percent in July, it said.

Agency chief Rusman Heriawan said 2011 inflation would come in at 4.7 percent to 5 percent.

“Gold prices unexpectedly became the biggest contributor to August inflation,” he told Dow Jones Newswires, adding that price pressures would ease after the end of the Ramadan fasting month.

The August figures were slightly higher than market expectations but Credit Suisse said the central bank would likely leave its key interest rate unchanged at 6.75 percent at this week’s policy meeting.

“We doubt that the central bank will be panicking as a result of this release,” it said in a statement.