Brazil recorded its highest inflation rate last year since 2004, with prices rising by 5.91 per cent, dpa quoted government officials as saying on Friday. This is close to 1.5 percentage points above the 4.5-per-cent inflation target set by the Brazilian Central Bank. According to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), inflation last year was up from 2009, when it stood at 4.32 per cent. The 2010 inflation rate was Brazil's highest since 2004, when prices rose by 7.6 per cent. The increase was led mainly by rises in the price of food and beverages, which rose by 10.39 per cent last year. The price of black beans, a staple of the Brazilian diet, soared 51.49 per cent in 2010, while the price of meat rose by 29.64 per cent. The price of services and non-food products, on the other hand, rose by only 4.61 per cent last year. The Brazilian Central Bank has set an annual inflation target of 4.5 per cent for 2011 and 2012, with a margin of tolerance of plus or minus two percentage points. The Brazilian economy expanded by an estimated 7.5 per cent last year. This year, experts expect GDP to increase by around 4.5 per cent. -- SPA
