Paris, Apr 29 (IANS): The year-on-year consumer price index (CPI) in France is expected to grow by 5.9 per cent in April, the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) said in its preliminary report.

After revising up March's CPI to 5.7 per cent, the INSEE said that the inflation growth in April "should result from an acceleration in energy prices and in those of services", reports Xinhua news agency.

According to the preliminary report, energy prices are expected to increase by 7 per cent on a yearly basis, compared with 4.9 per cent in March.

Fresh food prices are forecast to rise by 10.2 per cent, a clear slow-down from 17.1 per cent in March, the INSEE said in the report.

"Headline inflation continues to decline, but underlying inflation (excluding energy and food) will remain persistent and uncomfortably above central bank targets even by the end of next year," Alfred Kammer, director of the European department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), said on Friday.

He called on European central banks to "maintain tight monetary policy until core inflation is unambiguously on a downward path back to central bank inflation targets".