Consumer prices in Britain jumped by 9% to hit a 40-year high last month, with the biggest price increases seen in food and energy, official figures from the UK’s Office for National Statistics revealed on Wednesday.
The current rise in the consumer price index is the highest since the country started tracking prices in 1989, jumping 2.5% month-on-month. The agency estimates that inflation was higher “sometime around 1982.”
According to a recent survey cited by CNBC, a quarter of UK residents have started to skip meals to save money amid soaring prices. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey recently called the current outlook for consumers “apocalyptic.”
Earlier this month, the financial regulator warned that Britons are about to face a “historic” shock to their incomes, as it expects prices to continue rising. The Bank of England also said the cost-of-living crisis could plunge the economy into recession later this year. In order to prevent this, the regulator has hiked interest rates four times so far this year, from its historic low of 0.1% during the Covid-19 pandemic to a 13-year high of 1%. Analysts expect the central bank to hike interest rates further at the upcoming board meetings.