UK Inflation Ticks Up to 1.9%

Rising food, alcohol and tobacco prices helped to push up UK inflation, while the largest downwards pressure came from clothing and footwear

Alliance News 20 March, 2019 | 11:53AM
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UK consumer price inflation edged up in February, the Office for National Statistics showed on Wednesday, but still remains below the Bank of England's 2% target.

Meanwhile, producer prices accelerated and UK house price growth slowed to its lowest level since 2013, the ONS also revealed on Wednesday.

CPI accelerated to an annual rate of 1.9% in February, versus 1.8% in January. January's reading had marked the first time CPI has fallen below the BoE's target since January 2017.

Rising food, alcohol and tobacco prices helped to push up UK inflation, while the largest downwards pressure came from clothing and footwear.

Also released on Wednesday, the ONS said output UK producer prices rose 2.2% in the year to February, faster than the 2.1% recorded in January. Input prices rose 3.7% in February, following 2.6% growth in January.

House prices in the UK rose 1.7% in the year to January, slowing from the 2.2% rise posted in December, the ONS said.

The reading for January marked the lowest annual rate since June 2013, when it was 1.5%.

"Over the past two and a half years, there has been a slowdown in UK house price growth, driven mainly by a slowdown in the south and east of England," the ONS noted.

The Bank of England is expected to hold interest rates tomorrow as Brexit uncertainty continues.

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