Czech, Hungarian, Polish Inflation Is Slowing

Hungarian and Czech consumer prices were probably little changed in June and Polish prices fell as the strength of the nations' currencies held down import costs and economic growth faltered, surveys of economists showed.

Hungarian prices rose 0.1 percent in the month, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of seven economists on June 22 to July 7. Czech prices gained 0.3 percent after a 0.2 percent advance in May, while Polish inflation slowed to 0.2 percent from 0.3 percent, surveys showed. The Hungarian and Czech figures are due at 9 a.m. today. Poland reports on July 14.

Inflation in the three eastern European economies, which account for 80 percent of the gross domestic product of the 10 states that joined the European Union last year, is slowing after their economies grew at the slowest pace in at least a year in the first quarter. Government spending cuts are squeezing state- regulated wages, while retailers cut prices to lure shoppers.

Slowing inflation will help the EU newcomers meet terms to adopt the euro by the end of the decade, as targeted by the three governments. To switch to the common currency, they must keep their annual inflation rates within 1.5 percentage points of the average 12-month rate of the three EU countries with the slowest inflation. The target in May was 2.2 percent.