Chile's statistics agency reported a 0.6% month over month rise in consumer prices for August, outstripping the 0.3% consensus. That lift pushed the 12-month rate to 4.1%, above the central bank's 3% objective and higher than the 3.8% estimate.
The biggest pushes came from transportation, up 1.6% on the month, and food and non-alcoholic beverages, up 1.4%. Communication prices slipped 0.3% and helped offset a bit of the increase.
The release landed as policymakers, led by Rosanna Costa, met to decide the benchmark rate. They are expected to leave borrowing costs at 4.5% for a sixth consecutive meeting later today. Even with inflation pressures from rising fuel prices as the Iran conflict persists and a potentially hawkish Federal Reserve that could weaken the peso and raise import costs, slack in the economy remains: joblessness is the highest since 2021 and overall activity has been soft this year.
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If the peso weakens on a strong Fed stance, imported goods could get costlier, too. The central bank holding steady at 4.5% would signal it is balancing those pressures against a still-cool economy, which can mean inflation takes longer to glide back to target.
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