Price inflation in UK shops rises to record highs, industry data shows

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UK store price inflation hit its highest rate for at least 18 years in May, although the pace of growth in food prices slowed slightly, according to new industry data.

The cost of store items rose at an annual rate of 9% last month, up from 8.8% in April, marking the fastest rise since the British Retail Consortium (BRC) records began in 2005. the trade body said on Tuesday.

However, food inflation eased slightly to 15.4% in May, down from an all-time high of 15.7% the previous month.

Consumer price growth has accelerated since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, causing global food and energy prices to spiral.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of BRC, said that “while overall price inflation in stores has increased slightly . . . households will welcome food inflation starting to come down”.

He added that the slowdown in food price increases was largely driven by lower energy and raw material costs that have begun to filter through supply chains and reduced inflation on some commodities including butter, milk, fruit and fish.

But the price of chocolate and coffee has risen due to the high global costs of these products. These pushed inflation for room temperature foods – items that can be stored at room temperature – to 13.1% in May, from 12.9% the previous month.

Food inflation hits poorer households hardest as they tend to spend a larger percentage of their budget on essentials.

Mike Watkins, head of retail and business insight at NielsenIQ, who helps compile the data, said to mitigate the rising cost of living, shoppers were looking for seasonal promotions and supermarket loyalty program offers.

Data released last week showed that food Sales volumes they were down 2.7% from pre-coronavirus levels in March as consumers cut back on purchases in response to higher prices.

The BRC also reported that non-food inflation rose to 5.8% in May, up from 5.5% the previous month, despite outlets offering deep discounts on footwear, books and home entertainment.

BRC data suggested that growth in food and soft drink prices remained high.

In April, official food inflation was 19.1%, down only marginally from the 45-year high of 19.2% recorded in the previous month, according to the Office for National Statistics data released last week.

Headline inflation has declined less than expected at 8.7 percent from 10.1% the previous month, raising expectations that the Bank of England will raise rates further to curb inflation.