BRUSSELS (CNBC) - Euro zone inflation rose slightly to 2% in June, according to flash data from statistics agency Eurostat on Tuesday, meaning consumer prices in the single currency area are now in line with the European Central Bank’s target of 2%.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected the reading to come in at 2% in the twelve months to June. Euro zone inflation had fallen by more than expected to 1.9% in May.
Core inflation, which excludes energy, food, tobacco and alcohol prices, was unchanged at 2.3% in June.
The closely watched services inflation print picked up to 3.3% in June, after cooling significantly in May to 3.2%, down from a 4% reading in April.
Individual inflation prints released in the last week by major euro zone economies showed an easing in the harmonized inflation rate in Germany, a small rise in France and Spain, but no change in Italy in June — indicating that the wider euro area reading would have likely edged toward the 2% level targeted by the ECB.
That has further stoked expectations that the central bank will opt to leave its key rate, the deposit facility rate, unchanged at 2% when it next meets in late July, before making a final 25-basis-point cut in September.
The euro picked up after the data release and was last seen trading around 0.3% higher against the dollar.