Inflation in the eurozone fell sharply in March, as energy prices across the region fell from record levels reached last summer, but food prices remained stubbornly high.
The European Union's statistics office said on Friday that prices rose 6.9 percent for the 20 countries that use the euro in the year through March, down from an 8.5 percent annual pace in February. The cost of energy, which was soared last year after the invasion of Ukraine, has fallen this year as Europe has shifted away from a reliance on Russian fuels.
The price of food rose at an annual rate of 15.4 percent, a record, compared to 15 percent in February.
With both food and energy taken out of the mix, the core rate of inflation went up to 5.7 percent, from 5.6 percent in February. The rise in wages and the rising cost of services is a sign of the underlying inflation pressures on the economy.