Chancellor Jeremy Hunt says families across the UK will ‘heave a sigh of a relief’ as inflation has dropped to 3.4%.
According to the Resolution Foundation, the drop was the fastest 12-month fall in inflation since 1978.
It provides a more positive outlook for 2024, and represents the progress made since inflation shot up to 11% in October 2022, hugely impacting the cost of living.
UK food and non-alcoholic drink prices hit a peak price-rise of 19.1% in March 2023, which was the highest rate of increase in food prices since 1977.
However, the rate at which prices are going up has been easing.
It has been led by a decline in the rate of food inflation, which hit 5%, down from 6.5%, the eleventh consecutive monthly fall.
In response to the drop, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt hinted that it could allow the government to bring down National Insurance even further.
The set-piece data from the Office for National Statistics was the last major release before Tuesday’s decision on interest rates due from the Bank of England at midday.
In this episode of The Standard, Financial Journalist Michael Hunter explains how significant the latest drop in inflation is, and what it means for our pockets.
Michael also discusses when the Bank of England may cut interest rates, and explained why lower inflation doesn’t mean cheaper prices in the supermarket
You can listen to the full episode of The Standard podcast above, or alternatively find us on Apple, Spotify or wherever you stream your podcasts.
