April sees inflation rate jump

The rate of inflation in the UK economy has jumped to 2.7% in April.

The figure is up from 2.3% in March and higher than the City had expected.

The rate has been increasing steadily since the Brexit vote and is now at its highest level since June 2013.

It means that means real wages are falling across the economy, as earnings including bonuses only rose by 2.3% in the three months to February.

Air fares were the main contributor to the increase, according to latest data from the Office for National Statistics. This was partly due to the Easter falling later than last year.

Rising prices for clothing, vehicle excise duty and electricity also contributed to the increase.

The upward factors were partially offset by a fall in fuel prices between March and April, compared with a rise between the same months a year ago.

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