The European Statistics Office (Eurostat) said, on Wednesday, that consumer price inflation in the eurozone (19 countries) declined in November from the numbers recorded the previous month.
The bureau stated in preliminary data that annual inflation fell to 10 percent this month, down from 10.6 percent last October, in the first decline since June 2021.
This decline is driven by the decline in energy prices, led by natural gas, oil and its derivatives, in addition to the slowdown in the growth of food prices.
However, consumer prices in the euro area remain in the double digits, which is high compared to the European Central Bank’s targets of only 3 percent in the medium term.
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Food, alcohol and tobacco price inflation recorded 13.6 percent in November on an annual basis, while energy price inflation of all kinds recorded 34.9 percent.
Energy prices were affected upwards during the current year, as one of the consequences of the Russian-Ukrainian war, and Moscow’s reduction of natural gas supplies to European Union countries.
Inflation has hurt other economies, but it has taken a particularly heavy toll in Europe, due to its dependence on Russian natural gas, which Gazprom has cut back considerably.