Food and fuel costs drive Spanish inflation to 29-year high

MADRID (Reuters) -Spanish inflation hit its highest in nearly three decades in November as increases in food and fuel costs pushed consumer prices up 5.6% year-on-year, National Statistics Institute (INE) data showed on Monday.

The rate accelerated from October's 5.4% to reach its highest level since September 1992's 5.8%. Inflation has been rising across the euro zone in recent months, with Spain particularly hard hit.

Rising food costs were the main driver, followed by vehicle fuels and lubricants. However, a months-long acceleration in electricity costs reversed in November, according to the INE.

On a EU-harmonised basis, Spanish inflation also rose by 5.6% in November, up from 5.4% in October, the INE data showed.

Core inflation, which strips out food and energy prices and is used by central banks as a monetary policy determinant, rose to 1.7%, its highest since July 2013.

The European Central Bank believes euro zone inflation will have peaked in November and is set to gradually slow next year as supply bottlenecks and the energy crunch ease, according to board member Isabel Schnabel.

(Reporting by Anita Kobylinska; Editing by Nathan Allen and John Stonestreet)