BRUSSELS, July 31 (Xinhua) -- Eurozone inflation rose by 2.1 percent in July, up from 2.0 percent in June, according to a flash estimate from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union (EU), on Tuesday.

The inflation is above the European Central Bank (ECB)'s target of just under 2 percent and was mainly driven by higher energy prices.

The energy prices increased by 9.4 percent in July year on year, higher than 8.0 percent in June.

The core inflation, which excludes energy costs as well as unprocessed food and which the ECB looks at in policy decisions, hit 1.1 percent, up from 0.9 percent in June.

Data from Eurostat in a separate release showed that the eurozone economy grew by just 0.3 percent quarter on quarter during the April-June period.

The ECB last week decided to maintain the key interest rates for the euro area, expecting them to remain at their present levels at least through the summer of 2019.