London, July 27 (BNA): Britain’s shops and supermarkets raised prices by 4.4% in the 12 months to July, the largest rise since these records began in 2005, reflecting a jump in food and transport costs, according to the report. British Retail Consortium. Wednesday.
The Bank of England is looking closely for signs of how likely inflation will persist as it prepares to decide next week whether to raise interest rates by half a percentage point, which would be the largest increase since 1995, Reuters reported.
The BRC’s measure of annual store price inflation remains well below the broader ONS Consumer Price Index, which showed annual inflation hit a 40-year high of 9.4% in June, led by a 9.8% jump in food and beverage prices.
BRC data showed food prices rose 7.0% in the year to July after increasing 5.6% in June.
“Rising production costs – from the price of animal feed and fertilizer to product availability, exacerbated by the war in Ukraine – combined with exorbitant ground transportation costs, have driven up food prices,” said Helen Dickinson, CEO of BRC.
She added that rising shipping costs and the ongoing coronavirus lockdowns in China had led to higher prices for non-food items.
Supermarkets reported that customers reduced their purchases of food, and official data last week showed that sales volume excluding fuel in June was 5.9% lower than the previous year.
MI