Euro area inflation hits 25-year high

The euro area posted an annual inflation rate of 4.9% in November, the highest rate since 25 years ago in 1997, according to provisional figures released Tuesday.

The rising trend in prices mostly stemmed from higher energy prices, which were estimated to soar 27.4% in November on an annual basis.

Energy was followed by services (up 2.7%), non-energy industrial goods (2.4%), and food, alcohol, and tobacco (2.2%), Eurostat said.

Lithuania posted the highest inflation rate of 9.3% in November, followed by its fellow Baltic states of Estonia (8.4%) and Latvia (7.4%).

On the other hand, Malta (2.3%), Portugal (2.7%), and France and Finland (both 3.4%) saw the lowest rates in the month.

Due to pandemic measures such as lockdowns and travel bans, economic activities were impacted all around the world.

As a result, numerous production activities, from agriculture to automotive, shrank in 2020 and 2021, causing price hikes.