Central Banks
French and Spanish Inflation Undershoot, Backing ECB Cuts
French consumer prices rose 0.9% from a year ago in March.
Photographer: Cyril Marcilhacy/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Inflation in France and Spain undershot expectations, supporting calls for more interest-rate cuts by the European Central Bank.
Consumer-price growth held steady at 0.9% in France this month, defying analyst predictions for an uptick. In Spain, they slowed to 2.2% — a much deeper deceleration than expected — and are now approaching the ECB’s 2% target.