Inflation in Germany Hits Record High as European Central Bank Plans Next Move

The new 100 and 200 euro banknotes are presented at the headquarters of the Bundesbank, Germany's central bank, in Frankfurt, Germany, on May 21, 2019. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters

Inflation in Germany hit a record high of 8.8 percent in August due to soaring energy prices, adding further pressure on the European Central Bank (ECB) to massively increase interest rates at its next meeting.

Germany, the European Union’s largest economy, hasn’t had inflation rates this high since the winter of 1973–74, when global prices were fueled by the 1973 oil crisis.