Inflation goes up in OECD yet slows across Eurozone
INFLATION has hit a 30-month high across member states of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the group revealed yesterday, despite a slight easing of prices in the Eurozone.
Consumer price inflation edged up to 2.9 per cent for the OECD in April, from 2.7 per cent in March, reaching its highest level since October 2008.
The figure is extremely close to the 2.8 per cent reading for Eurozone inflation in the same month. Yet a “flash” estimate of Eurozone prices in May showed a small reduction in the rate, to 2.7 per cent.
“We suspect that the decline was largely down to lower energy prices and the unwinding of the ‘late Easter effect’ – which led to a surge in inflation in the leisure and entertainment sector last month,” commented ING’s Martin van Vliet.
“Eurozone headline inflation is set to stay well above two per cent in the remainder of this year, as energy and food prices continue to have an upward impact on consumer prices.”
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate across the Euro area held stubbornly at 9.9 per cent in April, separate data showed. Spanish unemployment figures are expected this week.