- Carsten Brzeski, ING Germany
Consumer prices held steady in the Euro zone last month, official figures revealed on Monday. According to Eurostat, the Consumer Price Index came in at 0.4% month-over-month in September, up from the 0.2% rise seen in August. On a yearly basis, the headline CPI came in at 0.4%, unchanged from the prior month and in line with analysts' expectations. The highest inflation annual rate of 1.8% was recorded in Belgium. Meanwhile, the greatest deflation was registered in Bulgaria, where consumer prices dropped 1.1% year-over-year in September. The so-called core CPI, which excludes food, energy, alcohol and tobacco, rose 0.5% month-over-month in September, following the preceding month's 0.3% increase. On an annual basis, core consumer prices advanced 0.8% in the reported month, meeting projections and the prior month's reading. The September growth in consumer prices was mainly supported by restaurants and cafes, rents and tobacco. Since 2013, the European Central Bank aims at inflation rates of below, but close to, 2% over the medium term.
After the release, the Euro rose 0.27% against the US Dollar to trade at $1.0998, while Germany's DAX fell 0.44% to 10,533.44 and France's CAC 40 declined 0.34% to 4,456.52.
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