1 year ago
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Image source, Shutterstock
By Anthony Reuben
BBC News
UK nutrient prices are rising astatine a slower complaint than different countries, according to authorities curate Mel Stride.
In an interrogation discussing nutrient terms ostentation with BBC Radio 4, Mr Stride said: "In Germany, Portugal and Sweden it's moving astatine astir 20%, truthful higher than it is here."
However, his figures are retired of date.
Inflation is the complaint astatine which nutrient prices are rising, mostly measured arsenic an yearly figure.
The astir caller figures for the 4 countries successful question screen the twelvemonth to April 2023.
But arsenic the illustration supra reveals, the UK recorded a higher nutrient ostentation complaint than the others.
Mr Stride would person been close based connected the erstwhile month's figures. However, nutrient ostentation successful Germany, Sweden and Portugal has fallen importantly since March - portion the fig for the UK has remained stubbornly high.
In fact, the UK's nutrient ostentation successful April was higher than the European Union mean of 16.4% and higher than each the large European economies.
It was beaten by Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Slovakia and Hungary.
BBC Verify has asked Mr Stride's section if helium had been utilizing a antithetic root for his figures, but we person not had a effect yet.
What's driving nutrient terms rises?
The crushed UK nutrient ostentation is truthful precocious has been the absorption of a caller Office for National Statistics (ONS) analysis. The ONS is liable for calculating the UK's ostentation figures.
It identified 3 main reasons down the terms rises:
- Russia's penetration of Ukraine, which had a large interaction connected vigor prices, arsenic good arsenic atom and fertiliser supplies
- Bad upwind successful Europe and North Africa
- UK labour shortages, which person near immoderate crops unharvested.
The bully quality is that planetary wholesale nutrient prices (that's the magnitude producers complaint for their produce) person been falling. However, it mostly takes clip for that to provender done to supermarket prices, truthful customers person to hold earlier their bills halt rising.
The ONS says 1 crushed the UK's prices person been rising faster for longer could beryllium down to a reliance connected nutrient imports. This suggests European countries that turn much of their ain nutrient person seen smaller nutrient prices increases.
The adjacent acceptable of UK ostentation figures - covering the twelvemonth to May - volition beryllium published connected Wednesday.
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