PRICES in UK shops rose by the fastest rate in more than a decade last month.
The jump was driven by the soaring cost of food, furniture and health and beauty products.
1
The latest figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) show that retail price annual inflation was 1.8% in February, the highest rate recorded since November 2011.
Price hikes are expected to continue until at least the spring, the BRC said.
It comes as Brits are facing a huge increase in the cost of living, with energy bills set to rocket by as much as £693 a year for millions of households from April.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: “Price rises will be unwelcome news for households who already face falling disposable income because of the rise in national insurance and energy price caps.
“Retailers continue to face cost pressures from higher shipping rages, with crude oil prices having almost doubled over the last year.
“Other pressures include labour shortages, commodity price increases and rising energy prices.“
She added that retailers are trying to keep prices down but there are “limits to the costs that retailers can absorb”.
Most read in Money
Non-food inflation – tracking the rising price of products such as clothes and furniture – was 1.3% in February.
That’s up from 0.9% in January and is the highest rate since September 2011.
Meanwhile, food price inflation was unchanged at 2.7% last month, the fastest rise since September 2013.
Separate research by Kantar released yesterday revealed that supermarket sales fell 3.7% in the 12 weeks ended February 20.
Part of the drop is due to rising prices, experts said, as households try to save money.
Brits spent on average £26.07 less at supermarkets in February and own label sales beat branded products for the first time in three months.
But some of the fall in sales is also down to more people eating at restaurants and cafes rather than at home after lockdown.
With prices on the rise, there are ways to beat the hike and pay less for your shopping – here’s how.
Yellow sticker shopping
Supermarkets often slash prices to shift stock when food is about to go out of date.
You can easily tell what’s been reduced as the items will usually have yellow stickers on them.
Sometimes you can get up to 75% off – a big saving on your weekly shop.
Loyalty schemes
Most major UK supermarkets have their own loyalty schemes, allowing customers to collect points and trade them for rewards.
For example, you could get vouchers, exclusive money-saving deals and lower prices by signing up.
Use food waste apps
Wasting food can cost families hundreds of pounds a year.
There are apps you can use to avoid wasting food, which could reduce your supermarket bill.
Other apps will cut your grocery spending by allowing you to buy food nearly past its best before day.
For example, Kitche keeps track of the food you bought at the supermarket and lets you know when items are getting close to their sell by date – which stops you wasting cash on food.
While the Too Good To Go means you can buy food and treats from shops including Morrisons, Greggs and Pret at a big discount.
Shop at cheaper supermarkets
Shopping at cheaper supermarkets can help shave money off your bill.
Latest research from consumer website Which? revealed that shoppers were spending £10.15 more on their shopping in November last year at Waitrose compared to budget supermarket Aldi.
We pay for your stories!
Do you have a story for The Sun Online Money team?
