Eurozone Inflation Soars to Three-Year High Amid Energy Price Surge

The eurozone inflation rate rose to 3.8% in September, its highest level since September 2023 when it reached 4.3%. The increase of six tenths compared to August's price advance marks a significant jump.

The main driver behind the rise in inflation is the sharp increase in energy prices, which have skyrocketed by 18.8% year-on-year, far exceeding the 14.3% recorded in August.

However, not all sectors are experiencing the same level of price increases. Non-energy industrial goods have shown a more contained evolution, with a year-on-year increase of 1.1% in September, slightly below the 1.2% of August.

The ECB's president, Christine Lagarde, defended the latest interest rate hike, emphasizing that a 'measured response is appropriate to keep inflation under control.' Ricardo Amaro, an economist at Oxford Economics, believes that the new surge in energy prices has been the main driver of the increase, but core inflation and food inflation have also shown slight rises.

Bert Colijn, chief economist at ING, highlights that the acceleration of inflation in September has been the most intense since March, and underlying inflationary pressures are rising in anticipation that energy prices will remain high.