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(Reuters) – BRUSSELS, July 16 – Official figures released on Friday indicated that euro zone inflation slowed in June following a steady rise in the opening months of 2021, while the bloc’s trade surplus decreased in May due to a drop in exports. Consumer prices in the 19-country single-currency bloc grew 1.9 percent year over year in June, slightly less than the 2.0 percent growth in May, according to Eurostat, the first decrease since September. Eurostat issued an initial estimate on June 30 that was corroborated by the final data. continue reading In June, one measure of core inflation was certified as constant at 0.9 percent, excluding volatile unprocessed food and energy. A more restricted gauge, which excludes alcohol and tobacco costs, was also confirmed at 0.9 percent, down from 1.0 percent in May. The European Central Bank anticipates inflation to rise later this year, but it has stated that the increase will be due primarily to one-time factors as the world economy recovers from the worst phase of the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, no tightening is expected, and borrowing costs are expected to remain ultra-low for many years. Energy costs added 1.16 percentage points to the overall inflation rate of 1.9 percent. Eurostat stated in a separate statement that the euro zone’s goods trade surplus with the rest of the world was narrower in May than it was in April. In May, the EU exported 188.2 billion euros ($222 billion) and imported 180.7 billion euros, resulting in a 7.5 billion euro surplus. The surplus was 10.9 billion euros in April, owing to a larger volume of exports. Click here for Eurostat’s press release: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/news/news-releases (1 dollar = 0.8471 euro) Francesco Guarascio @fraguarascio contributed reporting, and Philip Blenkinsop edited the piece. The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles are our standards./nRead More

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