Eurozone inflation hit a record 8.1 per cent in May amid surging energy and food costs fueled in part by Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Annual inflation in the 19 countries that use the euro currency soared past the previous record of 7.4 per cent reached in March and April, according to the latest numbers published on Tuesday by the European Union statistics agency, Eurostat.
Inflation in the eurozone is now at its highest level since recordkeeping for the euro began in 1997.
Soaring prices are weighing on household finances and making it more urgent for officials to act quickly to head off further increases in the cost of living.
Energy prices jumped 39.2 per cent, highlighting how the war and the accompanying global energy crunch are making life more expensive for the eurozone’s 343 million people.
“Energy inflation is likely to remain higher for longer than previously expected after the European Union agreed to embargo most Russian oil imports by the year’s end,” said Andrew Kenningham, chief European economist at Capital Economics.
Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose to $120 a barrel after the agreement. Oil and natural gas prices had already spiked over fears the war would interrupt supplies from Russia, the world’s largest oil exporter. Strong global demand following the Covid-19 pandemic and a cautious approach to increasing production from oil cartel Opec have lifted energy prices.
Food prices rose 7.5 per cent in May, Eurostat said — another sign of how Russia’s war in Ukraine, a major global supplier of wheat, is pushing up prices around the world.
