Britain’s annual inflation rate unexpectedly fell to 2.5 percent last month, official data showed Wednesday, easing some pressure on the Labour government faced with economic unrest.
Analysts had forecast no change in the Consumer Prices Index, from the 2.6 percent figure in November.
The latest reading from the Office for National Statistics comes one day after Finance Minister Rachel Reeves was forced to defend the government’s handling of the economy, following a recent sharp rise in state borrowing costs and a significant drop in the pound.
Britons continue to be hampered by high interest rates and elevated energy bills, despite the annual inflation rate retreating from a four-decade peak of above 11 percent in October 2022.
Wednesday’s data also showed that, on a monthly basis, the CPI rose by 0.3 percent in December, down from 0.4 percent a year earlier.
