According to preliminary data from Eurostat, consumer prices in the eurozone increased by 2.6% year-on-year in July. This means an acceleration in inflation compared to June, when it was 2.5%. Analysts had expected a slowdown to 2.4%. The cost of services in July increased by 4% (compared with 4.1% in June), industrial products — by 0.8% (against 0.7%), food, alcohol and tobacco products — by 2.3% (compared with 2.4%), energy — by 1.3% (against 0.2%). The consumer price index excluding food and energy (CPI Core inflation) remained at 2.9% in July, although experts predicted a decrease to 2.8%. On a monthly basis, consumer prices remained unchanged after rising 0.2% in June. The highest inflation among the eurozone countries was recorded in Belgium — 5.5% year-on-year, and the lowest in Finland, where it was 0.6%. In Germany and France, prices rose by 2.6%, in Italy by 1.7%, and in Spain by 2.9%. The final inflation data for July will be published on August 20.
