Brussels, 17/09/2014 (Agence Europe) - Euro area annual inflation was 0.4% in August 2014, unchanged compared to July, according to figures published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, on Wednesday 17 September.
At the end of August, Eurostat had forecast an annual inflation rate rise of 0.3%.
Negative annual rates were observed in Bulgaria (-1.0%), Spain (-0.5%), Estonia, Greece, Italy, and Slovakia (all -0.2%), Poland and Portugal (both -0.1%). The highest annual rates were recorded in Austria and the United Kingdom (both 1.5%), Romania (1.3%) and Finland (1.2%). In Germany, inflation stood at 0.8% and in France 0.4%.
European Union annual inflation was 0.5% in August, unchanged compared to July.
The largest upward impacts to euro area annual inflation came from restaurants & cafés (+0.08 percentage points), rents (+0.07) and maintenance of vehicles (+0.05), while fuels for transport (-0.17), fruit (-0.12) and telecommunications (-0.11) had the biggest downward impacts. (MB)