Lithuanian inflation under European Union methodology will probably slow to 3 percent from a year earlier in September, the statistics office said.

Consumer prices may rise 0.4 percent from the previous month, the fastest pace since May, as growth in clothing and fuel costs accelerates, the office, based in the capital, Vilnius, said today in an e-mailed statement.

Inflation was 3.4 percent in August, it said, increasing a 3.3 percent estimate released Sept. 10.

Lithuania needs to slow inflation to qualify for planned euro adoption in 2014. Countries seeking to make the currency change must keep inflation at less than 1.5 percentage points above the average of the three lowest levels in the EU. That target was 3 percent in August, while Lithuania’s 12-month average was 3.5 percent.

To contact the reporter on this story: Milda Seputyte in Vilnius at mseputyte@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Balazs Penz at bpenz@bloomberg.net