Georgian state statistics agency said on Monday, that country’s year-on-year rate of inflation fell from 14.3% in May to 10% in June, helped mainly by a month-on-month fall in food prices.

Food prices fell 8.9% in June, leaving the year-on-year increase in food costs at 22.2%, down from 30.7% year-on-year in May, according to Geostat.

The agency said that “significant” month-on-month fall in price was registered on fruits (28.6%); vegetables (26.2%) and sugar (5.7%).

Geostat’s figures do not provide more detailed monthly breakdown, including information on change of price on meat, which has significantly increased in the capital Tbilisi in June. There have been allegations that, although some senior government officials attributed price hike to need of putting EU food safety standards in practice, the price increase was a result of near-monopolistic nature of slaughterhouses business, allegedly patronized by the authorities.

Price on meat increased 26.4% year-on-year in June; fruits – 34.3%; food oil – 29.2%; bread and other wheat-containing products – 23%.

Fuel prices increased 21% y/y and there was 13.1% y/y decrease in prices for communications services in June, according to Geostat.

National Bank of Georgia (NBG) kept refinancing rate at 8% on June 22 for a fourth consecutive month saying that inflation will go down to 8% by the end of year.

NBG also said in late June that annual core inflation, excluding food and fuel prices, “is still low”. “Hence the demand-side inflation risks are low,” the central bank said.