France’s harmonized inflation rate fell sharply in September, preliminary data from the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee) showed Friday.
Harmonized consumer prices in the euro zone’s second-largest economy came in at 1.5% in September, down from 2.2% in August. The Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) is adjusted for comparison with other euro zone countries.
The HICP reading, which came in below the 2.0% expectations of economists surveyed by Reuters, is likely to ramp up pressure on European Central Bank policymakers to take measures to stimulate the broader economy.
A provisional estimate of France’s Consumer Price Index (CPI), meanwhile, came in at 1.2% in September, down from 1.8% in August.
Insee said that the sharp drop in inflation reflects a marked fall in energy prices, particularly those of petroleum products, as well as the seasonal effect of the fall in transport costs and the return to normal of certain tariffs in the wake of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
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