Good news for consumers. Inflation estimates published on Thursday 1 June by Eurostat are very favourable in the Grand Duchy: Luxembourg had the lowest inflation rate in the EU in May: 2%, compared to 2.7% in April and 2.9% in March.
With this rate, Luxembourg has even theoretically returned to the target set by the European Central Bank. For its part, Statec estimated the inflation rate at 3.69% over one year in April.
This is a good omen since generalized inflation around 2% will mark a stabilization of interest rates. The latter have soared over the past year: they are close to 4% in Luxembourg.
The one-year inflation rate in the eurozone fell to 6.1% in May, after 7% in April, according to Eurostat. This decline is due to a sharp drop in energy prices and a more moderate rise in food prices. This slowdown is more marked than expected by analysts from Bloomberg and Factset, who expected 6.3%.
Yet, the fight is not over as central bankers remain vigilant: “We will continue to move forward - with determination and without discouragement - until we see inflation return to our medium-term target of 2% in due course,” ECB President Christine Lagarde stated.
