Inflation drops to nearly three-year low in September
Complete data revealed harmonized inflation fell to 0.8% in September, down from August’s 1.0% and a notch below the preliminary estimate. The result marked the lowest reading since November 2016. Inflation sits sizably below the European Central Bank’s target rate of near, but under, 2.0%. The reading was chiefly due to a drop-in energy prices and reduced food, alcohol and tobacco price pressures.
Annual average harmonized inflation inched down to 1.4% in September, from August’s 1.5%. Core inflation, meanwhile, edged up to 1.2% from the previous month’s 1.1%. On a monthly basis, harmonized consumer prices rose 0.2% in September, above July’s 0.1% increase.
Among the countries in the common-currency bloc, Cyprus and Portugal experienced dropping harmonized prices on an annual basis. On the flipside, the Netherlands (2.7%) and Slovakia (3.1%) recorded the highest inflation. Regarding the largest economies in the Eurozone, inflation fell across the board.