"The general point-to-point inflation rate slightly eased to 5.35 percentage point in December last," said Planning Minister MA Mannan on Tuesday releasing the monthly consumer price index.
The new planning minister also disclosed that the implementation rate of the Annual Development Programme (ADP) during the first half (July 2018-Dec 2018) of the current fiscal year was 27.45 percent with an overall expenditure of Tk 49,645 crore.
But the ADP implementation rate in the first half (July 2017-Dec 2017) of the last fiscal year was 27.02 percent with an overall expenditure of Tk 44,331 crore.
The minister said the ADP implementation rate could have been higher than 27.45 percent in the first half of the 2018-19 fiscal year unless there was no bar to fund release during the last general election held on December 30.
According to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) data, the food inflation declined to 5.28 percent in December 2018 from 5.29 percent in November 2018.
The non-food inflation rate also decreased slightly to 5.45 percent in December 2018, which was 5.49 percent in November 2018.