Germany: Annual HICP stays unchanged at -0.7% (preliminary) in December vs. -0.6% expected

• Annual HICP in Germany stayed unchanged at -0.7% in December.
• EUR/USD pair continues to trade in the positive territory above 1.2300.

Inflation in Germany, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), was 0.5% in December, Destatis reported in its flash estimate on Wednesday. This reading followed a 0.8% decline in November but missed the market expectation of 0.5%. The annual CPI stayed unchanged at -0.3%.

Additionally, the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), the European Central Bank's (ECB) preferred gauge of inflation, remained steady at -0.7% on a yearly basis and came in lower than analysts' estimate of -0.6%.

Market reaction

The EUR/USD pair inched slightly lower after this report and was last seen gaining 0.3% on a daily basis at 1.2330.