FRANKFURT—Eurozone inflation fell less than expected last month and underlying price growth surged, reinforcing the case for the European Central Bank to keep raising interest rates at a brisk pace, data from Eurostat showed on Thursday.
Consumer price inflation in the 20 countries sharing the euro currency eased to 8.5 percent in February from 8.6 percent a month earlier as a big fall in energy costs offset a price surge in nearly all other areas, but still came in above expectations for 8.2 percent in a Reuters poll of economists.
Although overall inflation is well below its double-digit highs of October it continues to broaden, fuelling fears the earlier surge has seeped into the economy via so-called second-round effects, making it more difficult to root out….