U.K. inflation jumped to 3.3% in March as the Iran war sparked a sharp increase in fuel prices, preliminary data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed Wednesday.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected the inflation rate to accelerate to 3.3%, up from 3% in the 12 months to February. The latest data is the first hard evidence of the Iran war’s impact on consumer prices in the U.K.
The rise in inflation was largely due to increased fuel prices, which saw their largest increase for over three years, Grant Fitzner, chief economist at the ONS, commented Wednesday.
“Airfares were another upward driver this month, alongside rising food prices,” he said in a post on X.
“The only significant offset came from clothing costs, where prices rose by less than this time last year. The monthly cost of both raw materials for businesses and goods leaving factories rose substantially, driven by higher crude oil and petrol prices,” Fitzner added.
