Overview
- Eurostat’s flash estimate shows headline CPI at 2.2% in November, slightly above the ECB’s 2% goal.
- Core inflation held at 2.4% year on year, with services remaining elevated at about 3.5%.
- Energy prices fell versus a year earlier, a drag that analysts say could pull headline inflation below target in 2026.
- Market pricing points to almost no chance of a deposit-rate cut at the December 18 meeting and only limited easing next year.
- The ECB’s Philip Lane noted recent upside inflation surprises that temper expectations for an early‑year dip, while reiterating that transitory deviations should not prompt a policy reaction.