MNI 5 THINGS: UK Inflation Down To 12 Month Low in March

By Jamie Satchithanantham and Laurie Laird

     LONDON (MNI) - The following are the key points from the ONS' prices data

release published Wednesday by the Office for National Statistics.

     - Inflation continues to fall quicker than expected to an annual rate of

2.5%, but the Bank of England is still on course to lift interest rates as early

as next month. The IMF appeared to endorse a course of tightening in its latest

World Economic Outlook, released Tuesday.

     - Surprisingly, Easter had little effect on March inflation which was

pulled lower by women's apparel, as sterling-linked price increases in 2017 fell

out of annual comparisons. Alcohol and tobacco duties, which historically appear

in a March budget, did not materialise this year and so also dragged given a

high base.

     - Output price inflation fell to its lowest level since October 2016 but

input price inflation ticked higher on a rise in crude oil prices.

     - With the plunge in sterling after the Brexit vote falling out of y/y

comparisons, oil prices resumed their role as the most volatile component of

price measures. That means core consumer price inflation, which slipped to its

lowest level since March 2017, may become the most accurate guide to underlying

inflation.

     - House price inflation continued to ebb while London prices fell by an

annual rate of 1.0% in February -- the biggest fall since September 2009.

--MNI London Bureau; tel: +44 203-586-2225; email: les.commons@marketnews.com

--MNI London Bureau; +44 203-586-2226; email: jamie.satchithanantham@marketnews.com

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