Britain’s annual inflation rate rose to 2.2% last month, marking its first increase since December of the previous year.
This rise comes as domestic energy bills decreased by a smaller margin compared to July 2023.
The latest data shows that prices are increasing more quickly across the UK than in recent months, though the rate of inflation remains lower compared to the peaks of 2022 and 2023, when households faced significant rises in energy and food costs.
Grant Fitzner, Chief Economist at the Office for National Statistics, explained that inflation increased slightly in July due to domestic energy costs falling less than the previous year.
Mr Fitzner said: “Inflation ticked up a little in July as although domestic energy costs fell, they fell by less than a year ago. This was partially offset by hotel costs, which fell in July after strong growth in June.”
In response to the publication of the statistics, Andrew Lilico, Economics Fellow at the free market think tank, the Institute of Economic Affairs, said: “Today’s inflation figures support the case that the Bank of England has been too slow in cutting rates.
“Services inflation, which the Bank has overemphasised in its thinking, is down sharply from 5.7 to 5.2% in the year to April.
“Concerns about price rises in hotels and restaurants in the year to June proved short-lived, falling back in July. Core CPI was down from 3.5 to 3.3%. A slight rise in headline CPI (from 2.0% to 2.2%) was expected as a result of movements in energy prices.”
