Britain’s annual rate of inflation climbed to 2.5 percent in June, data published on Wednesday showed, exceeding economists’ expectations. The British pound and government bond yields rose as investors weighed how the central bank might eventually react to the continued increase in prices. Inflation rose 0.5 percent in June from the previous month, the fifth-consecutive month of increases. Last month, Bank of England policymakers said they expected the inflation rate to temporarily rise above their 2 percent target, and even exceed 3 percent, before falling again. This should allow the Bank of England to “continue to judge that rising inflation will prove temporary,” analysts at Royal Bank of Canada wrote.

Source: New York Times July 14, 2021 12:56 UTC