Anyone who thought that the high inflation rates at the end of the pandemic would be short-lived was wrong.
Again, the rate turned out to be higher than expected.
There was no calming of inflation at the turn of the year, with which special effects related to the pandemic were not measured.
Inflation in Germany was 5.1 percent in February, and it is unlikely to be any lower in the euro zone as a whole.
And this despite the fact that the consequences of the attack on Ukraine are hardly included in the figures due to the time lag in the survey.
So the March rate will be even higher.
The ECB will therefore also have to raise its inflation forecast next week.
It will be interesting to see whether, given the uncertainty, she still has the courage to announce the first steps towards normalizing monetary policy.
If not, the fatal situation for consumers could arise that the consequences of the war for energy will cause inflation to continue to rise - but the central bank does not dare to intervene for fear of the consequences of the war for general economic development.