OECD inflation stabilises at 2.1%

Annual inflation in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) area remained stable in April at 2.1%, although food and fuel prices rose.

Consumer prices in the OECD area rose 2.1% in the year to April, a figure unchanged from March. Energy and food prices rose at a slightly higher rate in April than the previous month, with energy up from 11.3% to 12.2% and food rising from 0.2% to 0.7%. However, excluding these two categories, consumer prices increased by just 1.2% in April, the lowest rate on record. Deflation continued in Japan, which saw consumer prices fall 1.2% in the year to April after a 1.1% fall in the year to March. Inflation slowed slightly in Germany, from 1.1% to 1%, and from 2.3% to 2.2% in the US. An...