By Steven Scheer

JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Israeli price pressures cooled further in September, with the annual inflation rate hitting a seven-month low of 2.5%, which combined with the end of the war in Gaza may convince policymakers to reduce interest rates soon.

The rate, data from the Central Bureau of Statistics showed, slowed from 2.9% in August. It had been as high as 3.8% in January.

The September rate was below expectations of 2.9% in a Reuters poll and was well within the government’s 1%-3% annual target range.

Despite pressure from lawmakers and industrialists to give some relief, the Bank of Israel has taken a cautious approach on rates, arguing the two-year Gaza war helped to underpin inflation due to supply constraints along with an expansionary budget to help fund the conflic

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