Led by weaker energy prices, inflation continued its decline in February, according to new data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
The Paris-based group reported that the annual inflation rate in OECD countries fell to 8.8% in February, down from 9.2% the previous month.
The drop came as energy inflation plunged from 16.4% in January to 11.9% for the OECD overall, with prices dropping in almost every country, including Canada.
Alongside the drop in energy prices, food inflation also eased for the third consecutive month. The OECD reported that food inflation came in at 14.9% in February, down from 15.2% in January.
Excluding food and energy, the core inflation rate was broadly stable at 7.3% in February, the OECD said.
For the G7 countries, annual inflation fell to 6.4% in February from 6.7% the previous month, the group noted — with declines in Canada, the U.S., Italy and Japan. Inflation was flat in Germany, but ticked up in the U.K. and France.
For the Euro Area overall, annual inflation was down to 8.5% from 8.7% in January. The OECD said that it likely tumbled further in March, dropping to 6.9%, according to preliminary estimates.