The annual rate jumped to 4.2 percent, the highest level since November 2011, the Office for National Statistics said.
The data “now makes it odds-on that all the pre-Christmas headlines will be of the Bank of England steals Christmas variety, if they do bite the bullet and belatedly nudge rates higher”, said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.Rising consumer prices ramp up the cost of living, especially when wages fail to keep pace.
Inflation leapt on higher prices for domestic electricity and gas, as well as motor fuel which faced shortages, the ONS said. “Costs of goods produced by factories and the price of raw materials have also risen substantially and are now at their highest rates for at least 10 years,” said ONS chief economist Grant Fitzner.