| CPI remains at 2.1%, RPI up to 4.3% |
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| Tuesday, 18 December 2007 | |
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Consumer price index (CPI) annual inflation – the government's target measure – was 2.1 per cent in November, unchanged from October.
The main upward contribution came from changes in the price of road fuels. Average petrol prices rose by 3.5 pence per litre in November to stand at over £1 per litre. This compares with a fall of 0.4 pence per litre last year. Diesel prices also rose, by 5.0 pence per litre compared with a fall of 0.4 pence last November. There were also small upward effects from heating oil which rose in price this year, reflecting movements in crude oil prices, but fell a year ago, and financial services, where the cost of exchanging foreign currency fell a year ago. The main downward contribution to change in the CPI annual rate came from gas and electricity bills which were little changed this year compared with price rises a year ago when there was continued phasing in of tariff increases. Smaller downward effects came from air travel, with fares on European routes falling by more this November than a year ago, vehicle maintenance and repairs, recreation and culture, where the main downward contributions came from audio-visual equipment and books, and restaurants and hotels, mainly due to prices in staff canteens rising by less than last year. Retail price index (RPI) inflation rose to 4.3 per cent in November, up from 4.2 per cent in October. The main factors influencing the RPI were similar to those affecting the CPI though there were additional upward contributions from food and motor vehicle purchase costs and a partially offsetting downward contribution from vehicle insurance. RPIX inflation – the all items RPI excluding mortgage interest payments – was 3.2 per cent in November, up from 3.1 per cent in October. As an internationally comparable measure of inflation, the CPI shows that the UK inflation rate in November, at 2.1 per cent, was below the provisional figure for the European Union as a whole of 3.1 per cent. The government’s target for UK inflation is 2.0 per cent. The Bank of England cut the base rate of interest by a quarter of a percentage point to 5.5 per cent earlier this month. Related articles
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