Prices are tumbling, right across the eurozone. But for consumers from Amsterdam to Athens, this is not a bumper Christmas sell-off: the falling cost of their weekly shop reflects a deep economic malaise. After Brussels statisticians announced last week that inflation had been negative in December, with prices falling at an annual rate of 0.2%, experts warned that without drastic action the eurozone may be sliding towards a Japanese-style deflationary slump. “This move in December is significant,” said Janet Henry, European economist at HSBC, “because it’s the first time that inflation has been negative since 2009 – ... (full story)