Eurozone inflation rose to a record 8.6% in June, again ahead of expectations and adding to pressure on the European Central Bank.

Rapid inflation continues to be driven mainly by energy prices, which rose 41.9% in June, up from 39.1% in May.

Next came food, alcohol and tobacco prices, which rose 8.9% in June, up from 7.5% the previous month.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile components and is considered a good indicator of underlying price pressures, fell slightly to 3.7% in June from 3.8% in May.

Among member states, the Baltic states were the hardest hit, with inflation reaching 22% in Estonia, 20.5% in Lithuania and 19% in Latvia. The lowest inflation rates were registered in Malta (6.1%) and France (6.5%).