Energy prices push inflation to three-year high, spelling tough autumn for ECB - EU Perspectives

Autumn leaves are falling. Energy prices aren’t / Photo: Unsplash European inflation has hit 3.8 per cent, its highest level in three years. Rising energy costs are driving the surge, complicating the ECB’s fight against inflation. Central bankers may need to raise interest rates at least once more before the year is out. Final figures from Eurostat show annual inflation in September climbing to 3.8 per cent in both the EU and the eurozone, up from 3.2 per cent in August. A year earlier, inflation stood at 2.6 per cent across the EU and 2.2 per cent in countries using the euro. Inflation varied widely across the bloc. Sweden recorded the lowest annual rate, at one per cent, followed by Hungary and Denmark at 2.1 per cent.