Inflation jumped to 2.3% in October – a six-month high.
An increase in household energy bills contributed to this higher than expected reading.
Economists had forecast a figure of 2.2% after a three-year low of 1.7% in September.
But how does all this affect the cost of groceries, clothing and leisure activities? Use our calculator to find out.
Which prices are increasing the fastest?
Unlike previous months, the product whose prices have increased the most is a non-food product: hair gel. Its price increased from £3.18 to £4.07, a jump of almost 30% in just 12 months.
Olive oil has also increased by almost 30%, with prices for 500ml to a liter rising from £7.16 to £9.16.
Experts attribute the price rise mainly to low olive yields due to last year’s heat waves in southern Europe.
However, they expect a significantly better harvest for the 2024-25 season, thanks to significant rainfall in Spain. The harvest could be double that of last year, which could lead to lower prices in the coming months.
Food and beverage products accounted for eight of the ten largest increases since last year.
Top five price increases:
• Hair gel (150-200ml): up to 28%, from £3.18 to £4.07
• Olive oil (500ml per litre): 28% increase, from £7.16 to £9.16
• Carrots (per kg): 28% increase, 65p to 83p
• Iceberg lettuce (each): up 23%, 79p to 97p
• White potatoes (per kg): increase of 19%, 75p to 89p
Overall, 47 of the 156 types of food and drink tracked by the ONS have become cheaper since last year.
Good news for shrimp cocktail lovers: frozen shrimp and mayonnaise are among the top 10 foods whose prices have fallen the most.
Overall, 147 of the 444 products in our database are cheaper than they were 12 months ago.
Main drops in food prices:
• Pulses (390g to 420g): drop of 11%, 76p to 68p
• Frozen prawns (per kg): down 9%, from £19.04 to £17.42
• Mayonnaise (390g to 500g/420ml to 540ml): down 7%, from £2.20 to £2.04
• Pre-made mashed potatoes (400g to 650g): down 7%, from £1.12 to £1.04
• Canned tomatoes (390g to 400g): reduction of 7%, 71p to 66p
Among non-supermarket items, kerosene fell the most in price – by a quarter.
What is the effect of inflation in the long term?
The price changes described above compare the cost of items to where they were a year ago.
However, inflation has remained at high levels for a long time.
The war in Ukraine, COVID, Brexit and other supply chain pressures have all contributed to spiraling costs in recent years.
Inflation reached its highest level in 40 years, at 11.1%, in October 2022.
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Even though the overall inflation figure has fallen significantly, any inflation means that prices continue to rise and build on already inflated costs.
We compared purchasing costs with what they were three years ago to see what the cumulative impact of inflation has been.
The largest increase in grocery prices during this period was for olive oil (500 ml per liter), which increased by almost two and a half times (146%), passing from £3.72 to £9.16 over the last three years.
Iceberg lettuce has increased by four fifths, with a piece of lettuce now costing 97p compared to 54p in October 2021.
Use our calculator to see how much the prices in your basket have increased in total over the past three years.
Who is most affected?
Richard Lim, managing director of Retail Economics, says: “It is the less wealthy households who will experience much higher inflation rates as they spend more of their income on food and energy. »
We will continue to update our expense calculator over the coming months so you can see how you will be affected.
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Methodology
The ONS collects these prices by visiting thousands of stores across the country and noting the prices of specific items. More than 100,000 prices are published each month, from more than 600 products.
The items that make up the “official basket” change each year to reflect the changing purchasing habits of the population. For example, in March 2021, after a year of the pandemic, hand gel, loungewear bottoms and dumbbells were added, while sandwiches purchased from the canteen were among the items removed.
When there are no exact equivalent items available in a survey store, ONS officials choose the best alternative and note that they did so so that it is correctly weighted when the averages are calculated.
Stores are also weighted, so the price at a large supermarket chain will have a greater impact on the average than at an independent convenience store.
We will update these numbers monthly as the cost of living crisis continues.
During the pandemic, more of the survey was carried out by telephone and work is underway to digitize the system so that more price levels can be captured by obtaining data from supermarket receipts, rather than by making personal visits.
Data journalists: Daniel Dunford, Amy Borrett, Ben van der Merwe, Joely Santa Cruz and Saywah Mahmood
Interactive: Ganesh Rao
Design: Phoebe Rowe, Brian Gillingham
THE Data and forensics The team is a multi-functional unit dedicated to delivering transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyze and visualize data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite imagery, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling, we aim to better explain the world while showing how our journalism is done.