Stay informed with free updates
Simply sign up to the UK inflation myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.
UK inflation unexpectedly accelerated in December raising questions over how soon the Bank of England will start cutting interest rates.
Consumer prices rose at an annual rate of 4 per cent in December, up from 3.9 per cent in November, data published by the Office for National Statistics showed on Wednesday.
The figure exceeded the 3.8 per cent forecast by economists polled by Reuters and followed a slowdown in the previous months, reducing pressure on the Bank of England to cut interest rates from a 15-year high.
Core inflation, which excludes food and energy, was 5.1 per cent in December, unchanged from the previous month. It had also been expected to fall.
The pound was flat against the dollar on Wednesday morning having traded down 0.2 per cent ahead of the inflation figures.
The unexpected rise in headline inflation follows two months of sharp declines and mirrors similar upticks in inflation in the US and the eurozone.
