
Eurozone inflation rose unexpectedly in February, fresh data showed on Tuesday, complicating the European Central Bank’s (ECB) disinflation narrative just as a fast-moving war in Middle East threatens to reignite a new energy shock for Europe.
Euro area annual inflation came in at 1.9% in February 2026, up from 1.7% in January, according to Eurostat’s flash estimate. Economists had expected the rate to hold steady.