In January, the rate was again 8.6 percent. Economists had expected a more significant drop to 8.3 percent. When compared on a monthly basis, prices increased by 0.8 percent in February.
The core annual inflation rate, which excludes variable energy and food prices, rose surprisingly to 5.6 percent. This is a record level. General inflation is driven primarily by higher prices for food and luxury goods. On the other hand, the increase in energy prices weakened again.
The European Central Bank’s (ECB) price target of 2% in the medium term continues to be clearly exceeded. The central bank has struggled with high inflation with 0.50 point rate hikes in the last period. At the interest rate meeting in mid-March, financial markets also expect a 0.50 percentage point increase in key interest rates.
(SDA)
Source :Blick
I’m Tim David and I work as an author for 24 Instant News, covering the Market section. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, my mission is to provide accurate, timely and insightful news coverage that helps our readers stay informed about the latest trends in the market. My writing style is focused on making complex economic topics easy to understand for everyone.
