Euro zone prices fall for fifth month in a row
Monday, 16 November 2009 12:09Prices across the euro zone fell annually in October for the fifth month in a row, official figures showed today.
The official Eurostat EU data agency confirmed an earlier estimate that the cost of living across the euro zone fell by just 0.1%, a significantly gentler drop than the 0.3% drop recorded in September.
Analysts said that October will highly likely mark the last month of euro zone deflation as oil prices rise. But they added that euro zone inflation seems 'highly likely' to remain under the European Central Bank's target of just below 2% for some time.
The figures marked the fifth monthly fall in a row for consumer prices, the first such decline since households began paying for goods in euro notes and coins at the start of 2002.
After hitting a record high point of 4% in June and July 2008, euro zone inflation has fallen sharply amid the global economic downturn.
For the 27 EU nations as a whole, annual inflation was 0.5% in October, up from 0.3% the previous month.
As with recent months, lower oil and transport costs helped pull prices down, while housing and food prices also fell, Eurostat said. On the way up were alcohol and tobacco prices and educational costs.
Among the euro nations, Greece recorded an inflation rate of 1.2% in October, with Finland, the Netherlands, Italy and Slovenia also marking price rises. Outside the euro zone the eastern European nations of Romania, Hungary and Poland saw the biggest price rises.
On the deflationary side, the biggest annual price falls were seen in Ireland, followed by Estonia and Portugal.
