Inflation jumps 2.9% in July on higher energy bills

Britain’s inflation rose to 2.9% in July, up from 2.6% in June, driven by higher energy bills. Official data from the Office for National Statistics showed the Consumer Prices Index climbed 2.9% in the 12 months to July, matching analysts’ expectations. The acceleration was linked to a 13% increase in the household energy price cap that took effect last month, described by the ONS as the largest rise in gas prices in almost four years and connected to the ongoing US-Iran war. New Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged to ease cost-of-living pressures, including a tax cut on electricity and a cap on bus fares. The Bank of England kept its benchmark rate at 3.75%.