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Euro zone inflation dipped below 2% for the first time

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• Summary

• Inflation 1.8% in Sept vs 2.2% in Aug
• Markets betting on Oct, Dec rate cut from ECB
• Energy, goods prices the biggest drag on inflation
• Services price pressures also easing a touch

FRANKFURT, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Euro zone inflation dipped below 2% for the first time since mid-2021 in September, reinforcing an already solid case for a European Central Bank rate cut this month as a three-year battle to tame runaway price growth nears its end.

Inflation in the 20 countries sharing the euro currency eased to 1.8% in September from 2.2% in August, Eurostat data showed on Tuesday, coming below expectations for 1.9% in a Reuters poll, primarily on falling energy costs and muted goods prices.

But a record string of interest rate hikes from the central bank has tamed price growth relatively quickly, and policymakers are now debating just how fast they should ease borrowing costs.

The ECB has already reduced rates in June and September, and ECB President Christine Lagarde sent the clearest signal yet on Monday that another cut may come later this month given sanguine price trends.

Such a quick follow-up rate cut was not expected until recently but a dismal string of growth data, moderating wage pressures and inflation readings below the ECB's own projections have all added to the urgency.