UK inflation slows to record low since February 2022
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The UK Consumer Price Index (CPI) stood at 6.7% year on year in August. reports in a monthly report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The inflation rate fell for the sixth month in a row, and this is the lowest CPI level since February 2022. In July, the UK consumer price index was 6.8% year on year.
The slowdown in inflation came as a surprise to many analysts amid rising prices for gasoline and diesel fuel. However, this increase was offset by a relatively small increase in food prices. In August, prices for food and non-alcoholic drinks increased by only 0.3%. A year earlier, for the same period, price growth was 1.5%. In August, annualized food price inflation amounted to 13.6%, in July – 14.9%. At the same time, in August, compared to July, prices for some products, including milk and cheeses, vegetables and fish, even decreased slightly. Price growth in the hotel and airfare categories also slowed. At the same time, the average price of petrol increased from July to August by 5.3 pence per liter, and diesel fuel by 5.9 pence. Thus, in August the average price of a liter of petrol in the UK was 148.5 pence, diesel fuel – 151.1 pence per liter.
UK Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt noted that August data shows the effectiveness of the government’s current fiscal policy and the need to continue it, since inflation is still too high. “It’s still too high and that’s why it’s important we stick to our plan to halve inflation so the pressure on families and businesses can be reduced,” Mr Hunt said.
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