INSTANT VIEW 2-Slovak Nov EU-norm CPI slightly above fcast

...the Slovak 
Statistics Office said on Friday. 
**************************************************************** 
 KEY POINTS: 
 SLOVAK EU-NORM INFLATION         NOV 07      NOV 07 FORECAST 
  pct change mo/mo                +0.4           +0.3 
  pct change yr/yr                +2.3           +2.2 
(Details of Oct inflation data .............[ID:nBSD000014]) 
  
- Food and non-alcoholic beverages, which have a strong 
weighting in the consumer price basket, rose by 1.2 percent 
month-on-month, after a 2.9 percent rise in October. 
- Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuel prices, which 
pushed inflation up last year, rise by 0.1 percent in November, 
after being flat in October. 
- Transportation prices rise by 0.3 percent month-on-month, 
after a 0.1 percent rise in October. 
- Annual price growth in the housing category, which has the 
strongest weighting in the basket, is 0.7 percent in November. 
- Food and non-alcoholic beverages is up 6.7 percent on the 
year. 
     
ANALYST COMMENT: 
    EDUARD HAGARA, ANALYST, ING BANK, BRATISLAVA 
    "The most surprising item were prices of food, and a little 
bit prices of services. 
    "The annual decline in the inflation rate was caused by 
disappearance of last year's higher numbers (energy price 
hikes). 
   "In terms of fulfilment of the Maastricht (euro adoption) 
criterion, we expect the 12-month average rate to drop to 2.0 
percent, while the reference figure could rise to 2.7 percent. 
    "We still expect the buffer for meeting the euro entry 
criterion in spring 2008 to by very wide, there should be no 
problem to meet the Maastricht condition. 
    "The central bank could pay more attention to prices of 
services, which it can influence through monetary policy, and to 
household consumption, which was high in the third quarter. 
    "We expect the NBS (central bank) to leave interest rates on 
hold on Tuesday, with the crown being the factor tightening 
monetary conditions." 
     
MARKET REACTION: 
    The Slovak crown was unchanged after the inflation data, 
trading flat at 33.320 per euro  as of 0815 GMT. 
     
BACKGROUND:  
 - The central bank (NBS) follows inflation calculated by the EU 
methodology as a part of Slovakia's plan to adopt the euro in 
2009. 
 - Prices under the local methodology rose 0.5 percent on the 
month in November, putting the annual rate at 3.1 percent. 
 - Slovakia aims to meet all criteria for euro adoption in 2008. 
The central bank predicts the EU-norm inflation rate of 1.6 
percent at the end of 2007. 
 - The central bank left its key two-week repo rate at 4.25 
percent in November, for the seventh month in a row, saying 
monetary conditions remain restrictive enough.. 
     
LINKS: 
- For further details on November inflation and other past data, 
Reuters 3000 Xtra users can click on the Slovak Statistics 
Office's website: 
http://wwww.statistics.sk/webdata/english/index2_a.htm 
      
- For LIVE Slovak economic data releases, click on...... 
- Schedule of upcoming indicator releases............ 
- Summary of short-term economic data forecasts...... 
- Stories on Slovak currency moves........................[SKK/] 
- Slovak speed money guide ................................ 
- Slovak benchmark state bond prices ................. 
- Slovak forward money market rates .................... 
 (Reporting by Peter Laca and Martin Santa) 
  
  Keywords: SLOVAKIA INFLATION/  
    

[BRATISLAVA/Reuters/Finance.cz]