Annual inflation up to 2.6% in the euro area in World Economy News 17/04/2026 Up to 2.8% in the EU Overview The euro area annual inflation rate was 2.6% in March 2026, up from 1.9% in February. A year earlier, the rate was 2.2%. European Union annual inflation was 2.8% in March 2026, up from 2.1% in February. A year earlier, the rate was 2.5%. These figures are published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. The lowest annual rates were registered in Denmark (1.0%), Czechia, Cyprus and Sweden (all 1.5%). The highest annual rates were recorded in Romania (9.0%), Croatia (4.6%) and Lithuania (4.4%). Compared with February 2026, annual inflation fell in three Member States, remained stable in one and rose in twenty-three. In March 2026, services (+1.49 percentage points, pp), energy (+0.48 percentage points, pp), food, alcohol & tobacco (+0.45 percentage points, pp) and non-energy industrial goods (+0.13 percentage points, pp) contributed positively to the annual euro area inflation rate. Revisions and timetable A flash estimate of euro area inflation is issued at the end of each reference month. The euro area flash estimate for March 2026, published on 31 March 2026, was 2.5%. The next flash estimate of euro area inflation with data for April 2026 is scheduled for 30 April 2026. Methods and definitions Annual inflation is the price change of consumer goods and services between the current month and the same month of the previous year. Monthly inflation is the price change between the current month and the previous month. A contribution shows how much of the annual inflation rate comes from a particular component of the HICP. The contributions are calculated according to a method which ensures their additivity (allowing for rounding). Geographical information The euro area (EA21) includes Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland. The European Union (EU27) includes Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden. The euro area and European Union data refer to the respective country compositions at a specific point in time. Changes in the composition of these aggregates are incorporated using a chain index formula. Source: European Union 2026-04-17 hellenicshippingnews... window.___gcfg = {lang: 'en-US'}; (function(w, d, s) { function go(){ var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], load = function(url, id) { if (d.getElementById(id)) {return;} js = d.createElement(s); js.src = url; js.id = id; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }; load('//connect.facebook.net/en/all.js#xfbml=1', 'fbjssdk'); load('https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js', 'gplus1js'); load('//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js', 'tweetjs'); } if (w.addEventListener) { w.addEventListener("load", go, false); } else if (w.attachEvent) { w.attachEvent("onload",go); } }(window, document, 'script')); tweet Share