Eurozone inflation, below forecasts, is controlled

Inflation in the euro zone of 16 countries was lower than expected in June, according to a first estimate released Wednesday, suggesting that rising prices remain controlled despite economic improvement.

The statistical office of the European Union said that inflation in the currency bloc stood at 1.4 percent annual rate, down from 1.6 percent in May and 1.5 percent forecast by economists in a Reuters poll.

"There is no threat of inflation on the horizon," said Clemente De Lucia, an economist at BNP Paribas.

"The decline in core inflation will limit the upward pressures on overall inflation coming from the most volatile components as the prices of energy and food," he said.

Eurozone inflation low energy prices in August

Prices for the euro area in its annual measure remained in negative territory in August, the drop in energy costs, strengthening the idea that the European Central Bank (ECB) kept interest rates steady despite a tentative recovery economic.

Consumer prices in the area of 16 countries rose 0.3 percent in the monthly comparison and fell by 0.2 percent per year, said Wednesday the statistics office of the European Union, which confirmed its year figure reported two weeks ago.

The numbers were in line with analyst expectations.

This was the third consecutive month that prices fall on-year, but officials said they see no danger of deflation, or a prolonged fall in prices accompanied by consumer expectations of additional casualties. In July, prices fell a record 0.7 percent.

"It seems highly likely that July marked the deepest deflation in the euro area and consumer prices could again be positive at the year as early as this month," said Howard Archer, chief European economist at IHS Global Insight.