According to new data, UK grocery inflation is at its lowest level in over a year. This is due to the falling price of locally grown food.
The British Retail Consortium announced on Tuesday that the annual shop price -inflation rate dropped from 6.2 percent in September to 5.2 percent in October, marking the fifth consecutive month of declines and the lowest level since August 2022.
Helen Dickinson is the chief executive officer of the trade group. She said that while a lower pound, and new trade frictions, had increased prices for imported goods, some locally produced foods such as fruit were cheaper than last month.
As wage growth is still strong, a fall in shop prices could increase household income and spending just in time for the busy Christmas shopping season. In spring 2023 food prices rose at their fastest rate in over 45 years, due to the increase in wholesale prices following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The surge in food costs hit poorer households the hardest because they spend a bigger share of their income on essentials. High grocery prices have led consumers to cut food purchases, which remain 3.7 per cent below their pre-pandemic level, according to separate The following are some of the most effective ways to increase your ROI: Office for National Statistics
Mike Watkins is the head of retail and business insights at NielsenIQ. The group helped compile this data. “Inflation helped many food retailers grow their topline sales in 2014, but shoppers are paying more for less.
BRC reported food inflation decelerated, from 9.9 percent in September to 8,8 percent in October. This is the sixth consecutive month of decline, bringing food prices to their lowest level since July 2022.
The fall was primarily due to a decrease in inflation for fresh foods, which fell from 9.6 percent in September to 8.3 percent in October. This is well below the 17.8 percent peak in April.
The price growth of ambient foods — those that can be kept at room temperature — slowed down to 9.5% in October, from 10.4% in September.
Prices of non-food items have increased at a slower rate. They peaked at 5.9 percent in March, and then fell to 3.4% in October. This is the lowest level since September 2022.
Retailers will be watching closely Tuesday’s data as we approach Christmas to see if there are any signs that lower price increases may boost consumer sentiment. Watkins said that as inflation continues to slow, retailers will be looking closely at Tuesday’s data in the run-up to Christmas for signs of a boost to consumer morale.