Falling inflation in Germany and France added to investors’ hopes that the European Central Bank will cut borrowing costs soon — even though rapid wage growth triggered a rise in services prices at the start of the year.
Consumer prices in Germany rose 3.1 per cent in the year to January, according to data published by the federal statistical agency on Wednesday. That was a slowdown from 3.8 per cent in December and below the 3.2 per cent forecast for January by economists in a Reuters poll.
A similar trend in French inflation, which fell to a two-year low of 3.4 per cent at the start of the year, has given investors hope that the ECB could start cutting its benchmark deposit rate from the current record high level of 4 per cent by April.
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