Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

UK annual inflation hits fresh 30-year high

UK annual inflation hits fresh 30-year high

BRITAIN’S annual inflation has hit the highest level since 1992, data showed on Wednesday (16), adding pressure to the cost of living and on the Bank of England to keep raising rates.

The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) edged up to 5.5 per cent in January from 5.4 per cent in December, also a level not seen in almost three decades, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement.

The rate is now at the highest level since March 1992, the ONS added.

Prices have soared globally over the past year, in large part owing to surging energy prices, while consumers are also facing higher food costs as economies reopen from pandemic lockdowns.

"We understand the pressures people are facing with the cost of living," chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, said in response to Wednesday's data.

"These are global challenges," he added.

As inflation reaches the highest levels in decades, lagging rises to workers' wages, central banks are deciding on how fast to hike interest rates.

The Bank of England earlier this month lifted its main interest rate for the second time in a row aimed at bringing down inflation.

Cost of living protests

The BoE has forecast Britain's annual inflation rate to peak at 7.25 per cent in April, far above its 2.0-per cent target.

The latest "increase in CPI inflation... will add a bit more pressure on the Bank of England to continue raising interest rates rapidly", said Paul Dales, chief UK economist at Capital Economics.

Policymakers in December lifted borrowing costs from a record-low 0.1 per cent to 0.25 per cent - their first tightening in more than three years.

They raised again this month to 0.5 per cent.

With prices shooting higher, Sunak earlier this month unveiled a support package worth £9 billion targeted at 28 million poorer and middle-income households.

This is likely to be offset, however, by a surge in domestic energy bills and a salary tax hike from April.

Hundreds of people protested in London and other UK cities on Saturday (12), demanding government action to tackle the sharply rising cost of living.

One of the marches organised by The People's Assembly headed for Downing Street in London where they called for the resignation of scandal-hit Conservative prime minister Boris Johnson.

Similar demonstrations were held in several other UK cities, including Glasgow in Scotland where a placard read "Freeze Prices Not the Poor".

Many demonstrators' banners mocked Johnson for lockdown-busting Downing Street parties, amid a police probe into whether the festivities were legal that has shaken his premiership.

(AFP)

More For You

Jio Platforms

Jio Platforms includes India’s largest telecom operator, Reliance Jio Infocomm, with more than 500 million users. (Photo: Reuters)

Reuters

Jio IPO planned for mid-2026, AI unit announced with Meta and Google

RELIANCE Industries plans to take its telecom and digital arm, Jio Platforms, public by mid-2026, chairman Mukesh Ambani said on Friday. The announcement sets a new timeline for the long-awaited IPO of a business analysts value at over $100 billion.

At its annual general meeting (AGM), Reliance also announced the launch of an artificial intelligence unit in partnership with Google and Meta.

Keep ReadingShow less
Asda tech overhaul

Asda sales fell 0.2 per cent in the three months to June 30, 2025 (AFP via Getty Images)

AFP via Getty Images

Asda boss hails tech overhaul as key to revival despite sales slump

THE chairman of Asda has admitted the supermarket chain still faces challenges after sales slipped again over the summer, but said the completion of a major IT overhaul was crucial for its recovery.

Allan Leighton told the Times that the long-delayed technology project, called Project Future, had finally been finished after years of setbacks and costs exceeding £1 billion. The work involved separating more than 2,500 systems inherited from former owner Walmart, following Asda’s 2021 takeover by TDR Capital.

Keep ReadingShow less
JLR-Getty

A logo is pictured outside a Jaguar Land Rover new car show room in Tonbridge, south east England. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

UK car exports to US rebound after trade deal

UK VEHICLE exports to the United States rose in July after a new trade deal between London and Washington reduced tariffs, industry data showed on Thursday.

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), exports increased 6.8 per cent in July to nearly 10,000 units, following three consecutive months of decline.

Keep ReadingShow less
Relatives of jailed Briton appeal to UK minister in AgustaWestland row

Christian Michel

Relatives of jailed Briton appeal to UK minister in AgustaWestland row

THE family of Christian Michel, the British businessman accused of acting as a middleman in the AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter deal, has appealed to the UK government to push for his release from Delhi’s Tihar Jail.

Michel’s relatives met Foreign Office minister Catherine West in London on Tuesday (26). The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said the minister listened to their concerns and updated them on ongoing steps being taken.

Keep ReadingShow less
Blackburn loses Issa empire as brothers move EG Group to US

Zuber and Mohsin Issa (Photo: LDRS)

Blackburn loses Issa empire as brothers move EG Group to US

ASIAN entrepreneurs Mohsin and Zuber Issa are moving the headquarters of their global forecourt company, EG Group, from Blackburn to the US in preparation for a major stock market listing in New York.

The firm confirmed that its main office will relocate to Charlotte, North Carolina, while a new base in Bolton, Greater Manchester, will handle its remaining UK operations, the Telegraph reported. The change brings an end to almost 25 years of the company being run from Blackburn.

Keep ReadingShow less