Investing.com - Consumer price inflation (CPI) in the euro zone spiked in January to nearly a four-year high, moving closer towards the European Central Bank’s (ECB) 2% target, official preliminary data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, Eurostat said consumer price inflation rose by a seasonally adjusted 1.8% in January compared to forecasts for an increase of 1.6% and following a final reading of a 1.1% advance in the prior month.
That was its highest level since February 2013.
According to Eurostat, energy prices drove inflation higher, followed by food, alcohol & tobacco, services, and non-energy industrial goods.
Core CPI, which excludes food, energy, alcohol, and tobacco costs, unexpectedly increased by a seasonally adjusted 0.9% in January. That was in line with expectations and the prior month’s increase.
After the report, which was released simultaneously with fourth quarter gross domestic product and December unemployment for the region, EUR/USD was trading at 1.0710 compared to 1.0703 ahead of the release, while EUR/GBP traded at 0.8609 compared to 0.8610 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets were trading higher. The Euro Stoxx 50 gained 0.56%, Germany's DAX advanced 0.30%, France’s CAC 40 traded up 0.45%, while London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.52%.