The already high inflation in the eurozone continues to rise. In September, consumer prices rose by 10.0 percent compared to the same month last year, as reported by the Eurostat statistics office in Luxembourg on Friday.

It is the strongest increase since the euro was introduced as book money in 1999. Analysts had expected an inflation rate of 9.7 percent. In the previous month, consumer prices had risen by 9.1 percent, which was already a record.

Inflation was again driven by the very strong increase in energy prices, which rose by 40.8 percent compared to the same month last year. Food and beverages also increased significantly by 11.8 percent. Industrial goods were 5.6 percent more expensive than a year earlier, and 4.3 percent more had to be paid for services. Core inflation excluding energy, food and beverages increased from 4.3 to 4.8 percent.

The three Baltic states again had the highest inflation rates in the currency area at more than 20 percent. Consumer prices rose by 24.2 percent in Estonia, 22.5 percent in Lithuania and 22.4 percent in Latvia. In Germany, the inflation rate calculated according to European standards was 10.9 percent.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is aiming for a much lower inflation rate of two percent in the medium term. After hesitating for a long time, the ECB is already fighting the high inflation with higher interest rates. Further significant interest rate hikes are expected in the coming months.