Inflation in the euro zone rose to 2.4% in April from 2.2% the previous month, the EU's Eurostat data agency estimated today.
The figure was slightly above private economists expectations for a rate of 2.3% in April.
If Eurostat confirms this when it publishes definitive figures on May 17, it would mean that inflation in the euro zone moved away from the European Central Bank's preferred level of close to but less than 2%.
Headline euro zone inflation reached a peak of 2.6% last September, fuelled by what were then record oil prices but has since gradually drifted lower.
However, a surge in oil prices to fresh records over the last month means that headline inflation is likely to push higher.
Meanwhile, economic confidence in the euro zone strengthened faster than expected in April and reached the highest level since mid-2001, according to a survey from the European Commission.
Its euro zone economic sentiment indicator rose to 105.3 points in April from 103.6 points in March.
