UK inflation at record levels

“All items” inflation is now +11.1% year-on-year, by the CPI method, which is higher than was predicted by the Bank of England.

Using the slightly wider RPI method, “all items” inflation stands at +14.2%. This is the highest general inflation seen since 1980.

The major driver remains utility prices, in spite of actions taken by government to soften the impact of high energy prices.

Food and drink CPI inflation moved to +16.2% in October. This is in-line with the revised food price inflation forecast issued by IGD at the Inflation & Impact event this month.

Input costs for food manufacturers continue to rise, suggesting that food inflation still has some way to run as cost changes are passed slowly down the supply chain.

The gap between earnings and living costs is still widening and IGD’s shopper research shows that financial confidence is falling across all ages, geographies and socio-economic groups.

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