Europe's inflation eased to 2.9% in October thanks to lower fuel prices. But growth has vanished

abcnews.go.com:

The inflation that has been wearing on European consumers fell sharply to 2.9% in October, its lowest in more than two years as fuel prices fell and rapid interest rate hikes from the European Central Bank took hold

FRANKFURT, Germany — The inflation that has been wearing on European consumers fell sharply to 2.9% in October, its lowest in more than two years as fuel prices fell and rapid interest rate hikes from the European Central Bank took hold.

But that encouraging news was balanced by official figures showing economic output in the 20 countries that use the euro shrank by 0.1% in the July-September quarter.

Inflation fell from an annual 4.3% in September as fuel prices fell by 11.1% and painful food inflation slowed, to 7.5%.

The drop to under 3% is down from the peak of over 10% in October 2022 and puts the inflation figure at least within shouting distance of the European Central Bank's target of 2% considered best for the economy. It was the lowest reading since July, 2021.

But growth disappeared as output shrank after months of stagnation near zero.

Germany, the largest of the 20 countries that use the euro, saw its economy output fall by 0.1%, while No. 2 economy France only scraped out 0.1% growth, slowing from 0.6% in the previous quarter.

Europe may have been pushed into negative territory by a statistical quirk involving Ireland, according to Rory Fennessy, economist at Oxford Economics. Ireland's drop in GDP of 1.8% was the largest among eurozone economies — but disproportionately reflects the finances of multinational companies that are based there.

Economic momentum remains weak for the months ahead, and will only recover pace when wages catch up with inflation, he wrote in a research note. “The