Hungarian headline inflation eased further to an annual 3.6% in March, data showed on Thursday, though prices rose from the previous month and services inflation stayed hot, reflecting trends elsewhere in central Europe.

The data was in line with analysts' forecasts in a Reuters poll. Core inflation came in at 4.4% year-on-year, a touch below expectations and still above the National Bank of Hungary's 2% to 4% target band.

While headline inflation has fallen sharply from last year's double-digit rates across the region - with Czech price growth sinking to the Czech National Bank's 2% target and Polish price growth at five-year lows - underlying figures show continued risks to price developments.

Hungarian data showed services inflation running at an annual 9.9%, while Czech services price growth came in at 5.4% last month, both well above headline inflation rates and central bank policy targets.

Hungary's central bank, which has slashed borrowing costs by 975 basis points since last May, warned on Wednesday that the structure of Hungarian inflation had changed, reflected in higher services price increases than previously seen.

The next policy meeting is due on April 23, when the bank has said it would likely slow the pace of rate easing further. (Reporting by Gergely Szakacs and Jason Hovet; Editing by Sharon Singleton)