Annual inflation rate in France edged up to 2.3% in July 2024 from 2.2% in June, below forecasts of 2.4%, preliminary estimates showed. The small uptick in inflation is due to a sharp acceleration in energy prices (8.5% vs 4.8% in June), particularly gas, partly offset by a slowdown in prices of services (2.5% vs 2.9%) and food (0.5% vs 0.8%). Meanwhile, prices of manufactured products flattened once again and cost of tobacco rose 8.7%. the same as in June. Compared to the previous month, the CPI edged up 0.1%, the same as in June. Main upward pressure came from seasonal increases in cost of transport and accommodation, and a rise in gas prices. In contrast, prices of manufactured products fell due to the effect of summer sales and food prices went down slightly. The EU-harmonised CPI rose 2.6% on the year and 0.1% on the month, both below forecasts of 2.7% and 0.3% respectively.