31/05/24 (Agence Europe) – Annual inflation in the euro area is estimated to be 2.6% in May, compared with 2.4% in April, according to a flash estimate published by the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) on Friday 31 May. It was highest in Belgium (4.9%), Croatia (4.3%) and Portugal (3.9%), while it was lowest in Latvia (0.2%), Finland (0.5%) and Italy (0.8%). In France (2.7%) and Germany (2.8%), price inflation remained slightly higher than the 2% target set by the European Central Bank, while inflation remained buoyant in Spain (3.8%). In terms of the main components of euro area inflation, services are expected to record the highest annual rate in May (4.1%, compared with 3.7% in April), followed by food, alcohol & tobacco (2.6%), non-energy industrial goods (0.8%) and energy (0.3%). (MB)