""With Brexit uncertainty weighing on exports and industrial weakness, it seems that the consumer has to carry a lot of the weight of the euro zone expansion on its shoulders".
- Bert Colijn, ING
Consumer prices in the Euro zone rose slightly on an annual basis in July, official data showed on Thursday. According to final estimates from Eurostat, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in the region grew 0.2% year-over-year on a non-seasonally adjusted basis last month, up from the 0.1% hike seen in the preceding month and in line with analysts' expectations. On a monthly basis, consumer prices in the 19-nation currency bloc fell 0.6% in July, following the previous month's 0.2% gain and falling behind the 0.4% drop forecast. Meanwhile, so-called core inflation, excluding alcohol, tobacco, food and energy, jumped 0.9% on a yearly basis in the same month, unchanged from last month's reading and in line with market expectations. Energy prices fell 6.7% on an annual basis and 1.0% on a monthly basis, whereas prices for services, the largest component of the bloc's economy, increased 1.2% year-over-year. Back in June, the annual rate of inflation in the Euro zone rose 0.1% for the first time since January.
In December 2015, the Euro zone fell into deflation for the first time since October 2009, forcing the European Central Bank (ECB) to launch its massive quantitative easing programme. The main objective of the central bank's monetary policy is to reach price stability across the region. The ECB strives for an inflation rate of below, but close to, 2% over the medium term. June
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