Average inflation in Georgia

Average annual inflation measures the mean rise in Georgian consumer prices over a year, calculated as the average of the twelve monthly inflation rates. It condenses the year's inflationary pressure into a single figure.

It builds on the consumer price index (CPI) compiled by Georgia's National Statistics Office (Geostat) from a regular price survey. The annual average compares the year's mean index with the previous year's, unlike end-of-period year-on-year inflation; long-run series usually come from the IMF.

Inflation erodes Georgian households' purchasing power and is the reference for the National Bank of Georgia, which runs an inflation-targeting regime to set rates. A high print pressures the lari and reinforces expectations of higher rates.

Being a yearly average, it smooths peaks and troughs and lags behind end-of-period year-on-year inflation. In a small, open economy like Georgia's, food and imported energy prices add considerable volatility; for the underlying trend, core inflation is watched.