The euro area annual inflation rate was 2.6% in March 2026, up from 1.9% in February.
A year earlier, the rate was 2.2%. European Union annual inflation was 2.8% in March 2026, up from 2.1% in February. A year earlier, the rate was 2.5%.
These figures were published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.
The lowest annual rates were registered in Denmark (1.0%), Czechia, Cyprus and Sweden (all 1.5%). The highest annual rates were recorded in Romania (9.0%), Croatia (4.6%) and Lithuania (4.4%).
Compared with February 2026, annual inflation fell in three Member States, remained stable in one and rose in twenty-three.
In March 2026, services (+1.49 percentage points, pp), energy (+0.48 percentage points, pp), food, alcohol & tobacco (+0.45 percentage points, pp) and non-energy industrial goods (+0.13 percentage points, pp) contributed positively to the annual euro area inflation rate.
