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SOFIA, March 12 (Reuters) - Bulgarian consumer price inflation slowed to 6.0 percent year-on-year in February from 7.1 percent in January, mainly due to a drop in food prices, statistics office data showed on Thursday.
On a monthly basis, inflation in February was 0.1 percent, down from a 0.8 percent increase a month earlier.
The Socialist-led government expects consumer price rises to fall to 5.4 percent at the end of this year due to weakening demand in the economic slowdown. The central bank forecasts EU-harmonised end-2009 inflation at 2.5 percent.
Food prices in February fell 0.7 percent on a monthly basis mainly due to a drop in the prices of meat, flour and bread.
Non-food prices edged up 0.5 percent mainly because of a rise in fuel prices. Bulgaria is a net oil importer.
Prices of services also rose by 0.3 percent on the month.
Under the EU-harmonised consumer price index, inflation was 0.4 percent on a monthly basis in February and 5.4 percent on an annual basis.
Bulgaria ended 2008 with inflation of 7.8 percent, down from 12.5 percent at end-2007 due to a significant drop in fuel prices and bumper grain crops which had eased increases in food prices.
High inflation has been one of the key obstacles on Bulgaria's path to euro adoption.
The expected easing in consumer prices has encouraged Sofia to demand a quicker entry into the pre-euro ERM-2 two-year obligatory currency stability test, to protect the country from the global downturn and send a positive signal to investors.
The latest Reuters poll [EMU/MEMS1] in January showed Bulgaria adopting the single currency in 2015.
Bulgaria operates under a currency board regime that pegs the lev to the euro and significantly limits monetary policy. (Reporting by Tsvetelia Ilieva)