Annual inflation in the European Union was 3.2 percent in May this year, down from a revised 3.3 percent in April, according to a report released by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities. In May 2010, the annual inflation rate was registered as 2.1 percent. Meanwhile, monthly inflation was 0.1 percent in May this year.
In May, the lowest annual inflation rates were observed in Ireland with 1.2 percent, in Sweden with 1.7 percent and in the Czech Republic with 2.0 percent, while the highest were seen in Romania with 8.5 percent, in Estonia with 5.5 percent, and in Lithuania with 5.0 percent.
The lowest 12-month averages up to the end of May were registered in Ireland -0.2 percent, in Sweden at 1.5 percent and in the Netherlands at 1.6 percent, while the highest were recorded in Romania at 7.5 percent, in Greece at 4.8 percent and in Estonia at 4.5 percent.