Eurozone inflation matched the flash estimate in May, while core inflation accelerated beyond expectations, official data showed Wednesday. Inflation advanced to 3.2 percent, the strongest since September 2023, and remained unchanged from the estimate published on June 2. This followed April's 3.0 percent increase.
Despite transport cost pressures, UK consumer price inflation remained stable in May, ahead of the Bank of England's policy announcement on Thursday. Consumer prices registered an annual increase of 2.8 percent, the same rate as seen in April, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday. Prices were expected to climb 3.0 percent.
Hungary's average gross earnings growth eased to the lowest level in four months. Average gross earnings grew 9.0 percent annually in April, slower than the 9.2 percent growth in March. The average gross earnings were HUF 772,165 in April compared to HUF 779,752 in the previous month. Net earnings increased by 11.2 percent, and real earnings were 8.9 percent higher than a year earlier.
South Africa's consumer price inflation accelerated in April to the highest level in nearly two years amid higher fuel costs. The consumer price index, or CPI, climbed 4.5 percent year-on-year in May, faster than the 4.0 percent rise in the previous month. Inflation based on transportation quickened to 9.4 percent from 4.9 percent amid a 28.7 percent surge in fuel costs.
Slovakia's EU measure of inflation eased marginally in May as expected. The EU measure of the harmonized index of consumer prices, or HICP, rose 4.0 percent year-on-year in May, slower than the 4.1 percent increase in April. The annual price growth in food and non-alcoholic beverages softened to 0.3 percent from 1.0 percent, and that in health slowed to 4.4 percent from 4.8 percent.
June 19, 2026 16:46 ET Major central banks continued to dominate the economic news flow this week too, led by the Federal Reserve, as they announced their latest policy decisions. The Federal Reserve policy session was in focus as it was the first to be led by the new chief Kevin Warsh. In Europe, central banks of the U.K. and Switzerland announced their rate decisions. In Asia, the Bank of Japan drew attention for its policy moves, while data out of China threw some light on the state of the economy.