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UK Inflation Inched Higher in February

Inflation in the U.K. ticked up in February, fed by higher prices for food, alcohol and video games.

Consumer prices rose 1.9% in the year through February, compared with an annual gain of 1.8% the previous 12 months, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday.

The Bank of England has signaled it expects to gently nudge up interest rates three or more times in the next couple of years to keep inflation at its 2% annual target, provided that the U.K.’s exit from the European Union goes smoothly.

Other major central banks have shifted gears in recent months in response to signs the global economy is slowing.

The U.S. Federal Reserve has put its interest rate-raising plans on hold, while the European Central Bank has announced a fresh round of long-term loans for the single-currency area’s banks.

Also Wednesday, the ONS said house prices in London fell 1.6% on year in January, the seventh straight month of declines.

Prices in the U.K. capital are now 3.3% below their July 2017 peak, data shows. House prices in London fell 17.8% between January 2008 and April 2009, when the global economy was in the grip of a financial crisis.
Source: Dow Jones

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