Inflation in the UK is forecast to accelerate sharply this month, with figures due next week expected to show the steepest monthly rise since October 2022, as households absorb a fresh wave of bill increases.
City analysts predict that the Office for National Statistics (ONS) will report inflation climbing to 3.6% in April, up from 2.6% in March — marking the largest month-on-month jump in more than two years.
This surge is being driven by widespread increases to energy and water bills, alongside rising employer payroll costs, higher minimum wages, and other administrative charges introduced at the start of the new financial year.
In April, Ofgem raised the energy price cap by 6.4% to £1,849, while the average annual household water bill rose by 26% (£123) to £603 — both major contributors to the expected inflation jump.
Sanjay Raja, chief UK economist at Deutsche Bank, forecast inflation to reach 3.4%, citing “historically large increases in energy and water bills” and additional inflationary pressure from changes to council tax, vehicle excise duty, and air passenger duty.
Support authors and subscribe to content
This is premium stuff. Subscribe to read the entire article.
