BRUSSELS, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- Annual inflation in the eurozone jumped to a 10-month high in December, the European Union (EU)'s statistics bureau Eurostat said Tuesday.

    According to a flash estimate issued by Eurostat, consumer prices in the 16 EU nations that use the euro rose 0.9 percent year on year, after a rise of 0.5 percent in November.

    It was the highest since February last year and is in line with economists' expectations, but it remained well below the 2-percentceiling preferred by the European Central Bank (ECB) to maintain price stability.

    Analysts say the still low inflation means the Frankfurt-based ECB is unlikely to raise its record-low interest rate in the near term.

    As economic recovery is gathering momentum across the globe, some countries are starting to tighten their monetary policies for fear of an overheating economy.

Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis