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Cyprus Inflation Climbs To 4% In June As Euro Area Price Growth Moderates

Cyprus’ annual inflation accelerated to an estimated 4% in June 2026, widening the gap with the euro area, where price growth continued to ease, according to flash estimates released on Tuesday by Eurostat.

Domestic Prices Move Higher

Consumer prices in Cyprus increased by 0.8% compared with May, based on the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), as inflationary pressures gathered pace across the domestic economy.

That contrasted with the broader euro area, where annual inflation is estimated to have slowed to 2.8% in June from 3.2% in May, extending the bloc’s gradual disinflation trend.

Cyprus Moves Further Above The Euro Area Average

The latest figures leave Cyprus well above the euro area’s average inflation rate, highlighting a divergence between domestic price developments and those across the single currency bloc. While inflation continued to moderate in much of the eurozone, price growth accelerated on the island.

Across the euro area, energy remained the largest contributor to inflation, posting an annual increase of 8.7% in June. Although still elevated, that represented a slowdown from 10.8% in May.

Services inflation also eased, falling to 3.2% from 3.5% a month earlier.

Food And Industrial Goods Show Softer Growth

Price growth moderated in several other categories as well. Inflation for food, alcohol and tobacco slowed to 1.6% from 1.9% in May, while non-energy industrial goods remained unchanged at 0.9%.

A Sharp Reversal From Spring

June’s reading marks a notable shift from earlier in the year. In March, Cyprus recorded one of the lowest inflation rates in the European Union at 1.5%, reflecting relatively subdued price pressures at the time.

Since then, inflation has accelerated as the impact of the conflict in the Middle East and Gulf region, particularly through higher energy costs, has become increasingly visible in consumer prices.

With annual inflation now reaching 4%, Cyprus has moved well above the euro area average, suggesting that imported cost pressures are playing a growing role in domestic inflation.

Relay Shuts Down As Its Founder Returns To Google To Shape The Future Of Chrome

AI workflow automation startup Relay is shutting down, with founder and CEO Jacob Bank returning to Google as vice president of product for Chrome. Some other Relay employees are also joining Google’s Chrome team.

Relay launched in 2021 with ambitions to challenge automation platforms such as Zapier. Its platform helped businesses automate repetitive work, including document creation, copyediting and project management.

According to Relay’s announcement, free users lost access on August 15, while paying customers will be able to use the service until September 14. The shutdown was first announced in July.

Relay Founder Returns To Google

Bank previously spent more than six years at Google. He joined the company in 2015 after Google acquired his scheduling startup Timeful, later working on products including Gmail, Google Calendar and Google Chat.

Now back at Google, Bank will lead Chrome’s product and developer relations teams. He said the role will focus on helping people use AI in Chrome while preserving their creativity and decision-making.

Bank described Chrome as a strong platform for working with AI agents and said he would share more about Google’s plans in the future.

Chrome Becomes A Bigger AI Platform

Bank’s return comes as Google continues expanding AI across its consumer products. Gemini is already integrated into Search and Chrome, where it can act as an in-browser assistant and support more agentic tasks.

The company’s AI push is also reaching a growing user base. Google recently said the Gemini app had surpassed 1 billion users.

For Relay, the shutdown marks the end of an attempt to build an AI-powered alternative to established workflow automation platforms. For Google, bringing Bank and members of his team into Chrome could strengthen its efforts to make AI agents a more central part of the browser experience.

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