Eurozone inflation holds at 3.8% in September, confirming flash estimate
Core inflation, which excludes energy and food, rose to 2.5% from 2.4% in August, according to the ECB.
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Eurozone consumer prices rose 3.8% in September from a year earlier, matching both the flash estimate published on October 2 and economists' expectations. The reading was unchanged from August's 3.8%.
Energy prices drove the increase, climbing 18.8% from a year earlier after rising 14.3% in August, according to Eurostat. Services inflation picked up to 3.2% from 3.0%, and unprocessed food prices accelerated to 4.0% from 2.7%, Trading Economics reported, citing Eurostat's flash data. Core inflation, which strips out energy and food, rose to 2.5% in September from 2.4% in August, according to the ECB's Statistical Data Warehouse. The European Central Bank targets inflation of 2% over the medium term.
Inflation varied widely across the currency bloc's largest economies. Spain recorded the highest rate at 5%, followed by Italy at 4.1%, France at 3.4% and Germany at 3.3%, according to data cited by IndexBox. The European Central Bank raised interest rates by 25 basis points on September 10, IndexBox reported.
Because Friday's figure simply confirms the flash reading already priced in by markets, it adds nothing new to the debate between policymakers who favour another rate move in October and those who want to wait until year end. The surprise that mattered came with the flash print itself, which broke the disinflation trend that Spain's and Germany's earlier readings had suggested. With the final number landing exactly as expected, the question now facing the ECB's Governing Council is how to square a 3.8% headline rate with its wait-and-see stance, rather than anything in this release itself. The data carry no direct bearing on US inflation or the Federal Reserve's policy path.