Inflation is still stuck at nearly double the Bank of England's target as Rachel Reeves faces more bad news ahead of the Budget.
Official figures showed surging food costs helped keep the headline CPI at 3.8 per cent annually in August.
Experts said the number - in line with analysts' expectations - puts 'the final nail in the coffin' for hopes of an interest rate cut tomorrow.
Alarmingly, food inflation nudged above 5 per cent for the first time in 18 months, going from 4.9 per cent to 5.1 per cent.
That was offset by falls in areas such as transport costs, while in a small silver lining closely-watched core inflation - excluding energy, food, alcohol and tobacco - eased slightly.
