17/04/2026 (Agence Europe) – The annual inflation rate in the euro area stood at 2.6% in March 2026, compared with 1.9% in February, according to figures published by the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) on Thursday 16 April. At EU level, it was 2.8% in March, compared with 2.1% the previous month and 2.5% a year earlier. The lowest rates were recorded in Denmark (1.0%), the Czech Republic, Cyprus and Sweden (all at 1.5%). The highest levels were observed in Romania (9.0%), Croatia (4.6%) and Lithuania (4.4%). Inflation was low in Italy (1.6%), moderate in France (2.0%), sustained in Germany (2.8%) and high in Spain (3.4%). Services (+1.49 percentage points), energy (+0.48 pp), food, alcohol and tobacco (+0.45 pp) and non-energy industrial goods (+0.13 pp) made a positive contribution to the euro area’s annual inflation rate. (BD)