French consumer prices rose more than expected in February, preliminary data from statistics agency INSEE showed on Friday, a sign of acceleration after they slowed to their lowest in more than five years in January. France's harmonized inflation rate, adjusted for comparison with other euro zone countries, was 1.1% year-on-year in February. A Reuters poll of 14 analysts had expected a median rate of 0.7%, with estimates ranging from 0.6% to 1.2%. The euro zone harmonised prices rose 0.4% in January, their lowest rate since December 2020.