Inflation in the euro zone was 5.1% in January, according to the service Eurostat. The rate of price growth in the 19 euro zone countries has reached a new high for the third month in a row. In December the figure was at 5%, in November – 4.9%. Previously, economists predicted that after the peak reached in December, inflation will decline slightly at the beginning of a new 2022.

It’s all due to rising energy prices: according to Eurostat, they cost 28.6% more than a year ago. Prices of food, alcohol and cigarettes rose by 3.5%. The cost of services rose by 2.4%.

Inflation affected Lithuania, Estonia, Slovakia, Belgium and Latvia the most. France has coped with the situation better than anyone else, where inflation does not exceed 3.3%, and economic growth in 2021 has become the highest over the past 50 years (+7%).

The European Central Bank will hold a meeting on Thursday. The figures published the day before are more than 2 times higher than the ECB’s inflation target (2%).

In contrast to the Bank of England and the U.S. Federal Reserve, the ECB is expected to leave its key rate unchanged, at zero level.