Investing.com - Consumer price inflation in the U.K. fell back below the Bank of England’s 2% target for the first time since November 2009 in January, according to data released on Tuesday.
The Office for National Statistics said the rate of consumer price inflation accelerated at a rate of 1.9% last month, down from 2.0% in December. Analysts had expected consumer price inflation to remain unchanged last month.
Consumer prices fell 0.6% in January from a month earlier, compared to expectations for a decline of 0.5%.
Core CPI, which excludes food, energy, alcohol, and tobacco costs rose 1.6% in January, slowing from 1.7% in December. Analysts had expected an increase to 1.9%.
The retail price index rose 2.8% last month, up from 2.7% in November, the ONS said.
The data also showed that the house prices index climbed 5.5%, below expectations for a 5.8% gain, but up from a 5.4% increase in December.
Following the release of that data, the pound remained lower against the U.S. dollar, with GBP/USD down 0.16% to 1.6685.