Eurozone inflation still at record high in October

Inflation in the eurozone was slightly lower in October than previously reported on a year-on-year basis. However, it is still at a record high because of surging energy prices, final data from Eurostat showed on Thursday.

The annual inflation rate came in at 10.6 per cent, up from 9.9 per cent in September, but 0.1 percentage point lower than originally estimated. Energy inflation stood at 41.5 per cent in October, up from 40.7 per cent in September. This was slightly below the initial estimate of 41.9 per cent. Meanwhile, food, alcohol and tobacco rose by 13.1 per cent from 11.8 per cent.

“Looking ahead, we think eurozone inflation has peaked, but it will remain elevated for some time. All signs point to falling eurozone energy inflation over the coming months, due to the slump in gas prices and the shift in year-over-year basis effects, also in oil,” Melanie Debono, senior Europe economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said.

In the meantime, the UK government on Thursday unveiled a whopping £55 billion fiscal plan as it attempts to reduce the gaping government deficit and restore Britain’s economic credibility, even as the country is on the cusp of a recession.

In his autumn...