Experts predict good news on inflation ahead of announcement this week

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Inflation is due to drop back below 10 percent following a shock rise in February, experts have predicted. It is expected to dip below double figures for the first time since last August, when the latest official figures are released on Wednesday.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is set to show that the rate of Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation fell to 9.8% last month, according to a consensus of economists.

It would be a return to a decline after a shock increase to 10.4% in February due to soaring food prices. Vegetable shortages helped push food and non-alcohol prices up 18% year-on-year, reflecting the sharpest increase in more than 45 years. READ MORE: Join the FREE Manchester Evening News WhatsApp community Households are still expected to face pressure on their finances for the coming months but policymakers will be keen to see a return to the expected pattern of cooling prices. “Following the significant upside surprise in the February numbers, we expect a clear easing back to have taken place in March,” commented economists at Investec.

They said a drop would be largely driven by lower petrol prices as demand continues to recover globally, particularly given that the new data will compare with March 2022, where prices shot higher following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.