EZ Flash Inflation Rose to 2.0% in May

EZ MAY FLASH HICP +0.3% M/M; +2.0% Y/Y; APR +1.6% Y/Y

EZ MAY FLASH CORE HICP +0.2% M/M; +0.9% Y/Y; APR +0.7% Y/Y

• EZ inflation rose further to 2.0% in May, coming in slightly above expectations (BBG: +1.9%).
• Annual HICP rose to the highest level since Oct 2018, above the ECB's target for the first time since then.
• Core inflation ticked up to 0.9% in May, confirming market forecasts and showing a two-month high.
• May's uptick was driven by another sharp gain of energy inflation, rising by 13.1% after increasing 10.4% in Apr.
• This marks the third successive positive rate, as energy prices are compared to the unusually low levels seen in 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic.
• While non-energy industrial goods prices ticked up to 0.7% and service prices accelerated to 1.1%, food inflation remained unchanged at 0.6%.
• Among the member states, Luxembourg (4.0%), Lithuania (3.5%) and Estonia (3.1%) recorded the largest rates, while Greece (-1.1%) was the only country to post a decline of consumer prices.

Source: Eurostat