Euro zone June inflation rate confirmed at 2.4 percent

Euro zone June consumer prices were flat compared with the previous month and rose 2.4 percent from a year earlier, according to data on Friday that was in line with economists' expectations.
The report, which was accidentally released earlier than scheduled on the Eurostat website, confirmed a flash estimate and showed the inflation rate fell from May's two-year high of 2.5 percent.
"The easing in the annual rate of inflation, although in line with expectations, may come as a relief to those fearing a potential (interest) rate hike in the not too distant future," said Jodie Saul, associate economist at CIBC World Markets.
The European Central Bank aims to keep inflation close to, but below, two percent and it was the second month running that inflation has come in above this level.
But the bank is already braced for a period of inflation above two percent and Governing Council member Christian Noyer said earlier this week that interest rates, currently at 2.0 percent, were appropriate to ensure medium-term price stability.
The most recent Reuters poll shows economists expect the bank to leave its key interest rate unchanged at 2.0 percent this year.
SALES VS OIL: The monthly rate was the lowest since January, with seasonal sales depressing the cost of clothes by enough to offset increases in prices charged by hotels and restaurants.
Higher prices for transport fuels had the biggest upward impact on the headline annual rate, boosting it by 0.28 percentage points. This was only partially offset by falls in the telecommunication costs and the price of clothes.
The core rate of inflation referred to by the ECB, which excludes volatile energy and unprocessed food costs, rose 0.1 percent on a monthly basis and 2.2 percent on an annual one. That compares with a annual reading of 2.1 percent in May.
"The core rate may provide some evidence to those members of the ECB who are worrying about inflation expectations," said Stuart Bennett, senior economist at West LB in London.
Finnish consumer prices posted their fourth consecutive annual decline, falling 0.1 percent in June. Luxembourg reported the highest inflation rate in the euro zone, of 3.8 percent.
The latest data comes a day after three of the euro zone's leading economic research institutes predicted inflation would be 2.3 percent in the second quarter, 2.2 percent in the third, and 2.1 percent in the last three months of the year.