Inflation in the euro zone is set to continue its decline in September but will remain above the European Central Bank's 2 per cent target ceiling, a survey says.
The mean of 20 forecasts in the survey due on Wednesday showed the harmonised index of consumer prices up 2.4 per cent year-on-year in September from 2.7 per cent in August and an eight-year peak of 3.4 per cent in May.
The month-on-month rise is forecast at 0.2 per cent from unchanged in August.
Recent data from Germany - flat on the month in September and up 2.1 per cent on the year - suggest inflationary pressures from higher oil and food prices over the past year are abating.
Analysts said the oil price rise in September after the attacks on the US to above $31 per barrel, the highest since last December, was brief and would not unduly impact the month-on-month change in the harmonised index of consumer prices (HICP).
Brent crude in London was trading around $21.70 per barrel earlier today.
Looking ahead, HICP is expected by many to fall below the ceiling in the first quarter of next year, although a rise is predicted next January when the index absorbs French and German rises in tobacco taxes.
