Greece and Cyprus are the eurozone’s deflation leaders
![Greece and Cyprus are the eurozone’s deflation leaders](https://www.ekathimerini.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/inflation-thumb-large.jpg)
Greece and Cyprus had the lowest consumer price index rates in the eurozone last month as the entire bloc saw prices reduced by 0.3% in September on an annual basis, Eurostat announced.
The flash year-on-year estimate released on Friday by the statistical office of the European Union compared with 0.2% deflation in August.
The lowest estimated annual inflation rates were in Greece (-2.3%), Cyprus (-1.9%) and Estonia (-1.3%), and the highest in Slovakia (1.5%), the Netherlands (1.0%) and Lithuania (0.6%).
Data collection for Harmonized Indices of Consumer Prices (HICP) has been affected by the Covid-19 crisis in all eurozone countries, Eurostat said.
Among the main components, food, alcohol and tobacco are expected to have the highest annual rate in September at 1.8%, along with services at 0.5% and non-energy industrial goods at -0.3%.
Energy is expected to have a record -8.2% annual rate, down from -1.8% in September 2019.
The annual rate for services dropped from 1.5% in 2019 to 0.5% this year.
[Xinhua]