Dhaka: With the declining trend of both food and non-food inflation rates, the general point-to-point inflation rate in the country hit 53-month low at 5.03 percent in December last down from 5.38 percentage point in November.

The general point-to-point inflation rate was 5.57 percentage point in October.

"The general point-to-point inflation rate hit 53-month low at 5.03 percentage point in December," said Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Tuesday while releasing the monthly consumer price index (CPI) after the day's Ecnec meeting. The general point-to-point inflation rate in December 2015 was 6.10 percent.

He also informed that the country last witnessed the lowest inflation rate in July 2012 when the point-to-point general inflation rate was 5.01 percent.

General point-to-point inflation rate, percentage change in the CPI during the last 12 months, in September was 5.53 percent, in August 5.37 percent, in July 5.40 percent, in May 5.45 percent, in April 5.61 percent, in March 5.65 percent and in February it was5.62 percent.

According to data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), point-to-point food inflation declined to 5.38 percentage point in December from 5.41 percentage point in November.

The Planning Minister said the inflation rate in the previous month eased significantly due to the availability and smooth supply chain of both food and non-food items.

According to the BBS, the average general point-to-point inflation rate in the last fiscal year was 5.92 percent, which was 6.41 percent in fiscal year 2014-15, 7.35 percent in fiscal year 2013-14, 6.78 percent in fiscal year 2012-13.

The BBS data showed that the point-to-point non-food inflation rate also slightly declined to 4.49 percent in December 2016 down from 5.33 percent in November. Besides, the general inflation rate at the urban level in December declined to 6.07 percent while it was 4.46 percent at the rural level.

At the rural level, the food inflation slightly declined to 4.78 percent in December, down from 4.83 percent in the previous month, while the non-food inflation declined to 3.88 percent in December against 4.60 percent in November last. In urban areas, the food inflation also declined to 6.07 percent in December, down from 6.56 percent in November.

The non-food inflation rate also witnessed a declining trend with 5.35 percent in December which was 6.35 percent in November last. The point-to-point national wage index witnessed an increasing trend with 6.56 percent in December. The average year- to-year rate of inflation from January 2016 to December 2016 also declined to 5.55 percent, which was 6.20 percent from January 2015 to December 2015.