Euro Area: Inflation falls in February
Harmonized inflation fell to 2.6% in February from 2.8% in January. Therefore, inflation moved closer to the European Central Bank’s target rate of 2.0%.
February saw softer increases in prices for non-energy industrial goods, food, alcohol and tobacco and services. Conversely, prices for energy fell at a softer clip. Meanwhile, the annual rate of core inflation—which excludes volatile energy and unprocessed food prices—declined to 3.3% in February from January’s 3.6%.
On a monthly basis, harmonized consumer prices rose 0.6% in February, swinging from January’s 0.4% decrease.
Commenting on the outlook, ING’s Bert Colijn stated:
“For the months ahead, the broader inflation picture looks relatively benign. Still, with unemployment at record lows and the economy not in recession, the ECB will not feel rushed towards rate cuts as concerns around services inflation linger.”