FRANKFURT - GERMAN inflation fell to 1.4 per cent in November on an annual basis, the fourth month running that prices have fallen, final figures released on Wednesday by the national statistics service showed.

It marked the first time inflation was below 2.0 per cent since June 2007 in the biggest European economy, the Destatis service said.

Consumer prices shed 0.5 per cent from October, it added, confirming a preliminary estimate released on Nov 26.

The downward trend was driven by lower prices for mineral oil products, 'especially for motor fuels - which are caused in particular by declining world market prices of crude oil,' Destatis said.

When the cost of mineral oil products was stripped out, annual inflation came to 2.0 per cent.

In Oran, Algeria, the Opec oil cartel was set to announce a significant cut in oil output as it sought to support plummeting crude prices and producers' incomes.

Meanwhile, other German energy prices posted strong gains in November, with gas costing 22.4 per cent more, heating charges up by 15.7 per cent and electricity rising by 6.1 per cent, the Destatis data showed.

Food prices rose by an average 2.1 per cent.

In the 15-nation eurozone, inflation has dropped sharply from a record 4.0 per cent in July to 2.1 per cent in November, setting the stage for deep interest rate cuts by the European Central Bank.

In the United States, plunging energy prices pushed US consumer prices down by a record 1.7 per cent in November as recession deepened there and concern over possible deflation intensified.

It was the second straight month of record declines in the seasonally adjusted data consumer price index (CPI) since 1947, when the US Labor Department began recording the figures. -- AFP