Eurozone: Inflation jumps in April
May 17, 2019
Complete data confirmed harmonized inflation came in at 1.7% in April, up from March’s 1.4% and matching the preliminary estimate. Inflation now sits closer to the European Central Bank’s target rate of near, but under, 2.0%. Higher price pressures for services largely drove April’s rise, in part due to the timing of the Easter holiday this year.
Annual average harmonized inflation was unchanged at March’s 1.8% in April. Core inflation, meanwhile, rose to 1.4% from March’s 1.0%. On a monthly basis, harmonized consumer prices rose 0.7% in April, a smaller increase then March’s 1.0%.
Among the countries in the common-currency bloc, Italy (1.1%) and Portugal (0.9%) recorded the lowest inflation in April. On the flipside, Latvia (3.3%) and Estonia (3.2%) experienced the highest price pressures. Regarding the largest economies in the Eurozone, inflation rose in all expected for Italy which experienced unchanged price pressures.
Eurozone Inflation Forecast
FocusEconomics Consensus Forecast participants see inflation in the Euro area averaging 1.3% in 2019. For 2020, panelists expect inflation to average 1.5%.
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