Eurozone CPI rises for a second consecutive month to 1.6%

Consumer price inflation (CPI) in the eurozone increased to 1.6 percent in June from 1.4 percent in May, European Union (EU) statistics office Eurostat said Tuesday. This is the second month in a row that CPI has risen in the single currency area which is suffering economic recession and at the risk of deflation, according to figures released by Eurostat. The annual inflation in the EU was 1.7 percent, up from 1.6 percent in May. In June, the lowest annual rates were observed in Greece at minus 0.3 percent and the highest in Romania at 4.5 percent. The largest upward impacts to eurozone annual inflation came from vegetables, fruit and electricity, while telecommunications, fuels for transport and medical & paramedical services had the biggest downward impacts, Eurostat said.