Eurozone inflation rate rose to 3.2% in May.

Preliminary data released by the European Union's statistics office on the 2nd showed that due to the accelerating rise in service sector prices and the continued high energy costs, the inflation rate in the euro area rose to 3.2% in May, higher than April's 3.0%. The data showed that energy prices continued to remain high in May, increasing by 10.9% year-on-year, still the main driver of overall price increases. The year-on-year increase in service sector prices widened from 3.0% in April to 3.5%. The growth in food and tobacco prices narrowed slightly, while non-energy industrial product prices remained stable. In that month, the core inflation rate, excluding energy, food, and tobacco prices, was 2.5%. Country-specific data released showed that the inflation rate in Germany in May was 2.7%, while in France and Italy it rose to 2.8% and 3.3% respectively, and in Spain, the inflation rate reached a high of 3.6%. The inflation rates of the major economies in the euro area are all high, indicating that the current round of price increases is widespread within the entire euro area. Faced with the current inflation situation, the European Central Bank's monetary policy is facing a more severe test. Analysts believe that in the situation where the inflation rate is still unable to steadily return to the mid-term target of 2%, the ECB may maintain the current interest rate levels for a longer period of time, and may even consider the possibility of raising interest rates.