Why is UK inflation steady and how will the Iran war affect it?

Insolvency specialist Begbies Traynor has warned that higher wage bills and prospects for fewer interest rate cuts will keep company failures at high levels, as it revealed its own cost hit from the recent Budget (Alamy/PA) -

Inflation remained steady in February before the war in Iran sparked a jump in global energy prices.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported an annual rate of Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation of 3% for the month, the same as in January.