Eurozone inflation hits its highest level since the creation of the euro in 1999.

Inflation in the euro area in May hit its highest annual level since the creation of the euro currency in 1999, according to Europe's statistics agency.

Inflation in the 19 countries that use the euro currency rose to a record 8.1 percent in May, up from 7.4 percent in April. Prices have been rising for 10 consecutive months and show no signs of letting up, making it more difficult for consumers to make ends meet and forcing European policymakers to pledge a variety of measures to blunt the pain. In the United States, consumer price inflation has reached 8.3 percent, which is a slight moderation from previous months.

The European Commission has lowered its economic growth forecasts for this year. The commission forecast that inflation will average 6.8 percent for the year, making it likely that Europe will tip into a recession before the end of the year.

The era of negative interest rates could be over as soon as September after the European Central Bank sped up its policy response.

In May, energy costs rose by a record 39.2 percent, while processed food, alcohol and tobacco rose by 7 percent, pushing up prices for consumers and businesses.

European leaders reached a political deal early Tuesday morning on an embargo on most Russian oil imports, a once unthinkable measure that is aimed at punishing Russia but that economists say will also hurt European households and industry by pushing prices even higher.

Inflation in Germany, the biggest economy in Europe, has risen 8.7 percent. Lawmakers in France, Spain, and Italy offered to cap energy prices to help low-income households offset the cost of gas and diesel as consumer prices continued to climb.

In June, the government in Germany will offer reductions for the price of gas at the pump and a monthly $10 ticket for public transport across the country.

The rise in energy costs has had the biggest impact on countries close to Russia. Inflation in Estonia, which used to be dependent on Russian gas but is now subject to market swings in energy prices, surged by 20.1 percent, nearly double the 11 percent recorded in January. In both Lithuania and Latvia, annual inflation went up.

Wage growth across the region was subdued while some European Central Bank policymakers were reluctant to act as inflation began to rise. As consumer prices keep climbing and have spread to more goods and services, the bank is ramping up its process of so-called policy normalization.

The bank is expected to end its large bond-buying program by early July, and then begin raising interest rates for the first time in a decade. Christine Lagarde, the bank's president, laid out in clear terms the expected path for interest rate increases last week.

The bank's chief economist, Philip Lane, recently said that increases were likely to be a quarter of a percentage point at a time, but some policymakers have suggested that a larger-than-normal increase, of half a percentage point, might be justified.

The reporting was contributed by Eshe Nelson.