France preliminary inflation rises to 2.8% in May, below forecasts

May 29 (Reuters) – French consumer prices rose less ​than expected ‌in May, preliminary data from statistics agency INSEE ‌showed ​on ⁠Friday.

France’s harmonized ⁠inflation rate, adjusted for comparison with other euro ​zone countries, was 2.8% ⁠year-on-year ⁠in May, driven ​by higher energy ​prices, particularly for ‌natural gas, the stats office said.

A Reuters ⁠poll of 19 analysts had expected ⁠a ‌median rate ⁠of 2.9%, ​with ‌estimates ranging from ​2.3% ⁠to 3.1%.

(Reporting by Hugo Lhomedet in Gdansk, editing by Milla ​Nissi-Prussak)