French inflation slows to 0.8% in October, below expectations

Investing.com -- French consumer prices rose 0.8% year-on-year in October, statistics office INSEE reported Friday, coming in below analysts’ expectations and the preliminary reading published last month.

The EU-harmonised inflation figure in France, the eurozone’s second largest economy, slowed from September’s reading of 1.1%. A poll of 17 analysts had forecast a rate of 0.9% on average.

INSEE attributed the slowdown to a sharper decline in energy prices and a slower increase in food prices. Price increases in services and tobacco were the main drivers of inflation in October.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices increased 0.1% in October following a 1.0% drop in September.

Inflation measured by France’s own consumer price index rose 0.9% over the year through October, down from 1.2% in September.

France has maintained inflation below the European Central Bank’s 2% target for more than a year. This 2% target is the ECB’s ideal rate for price stability over the medium term.

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