UK inflation rises 2.9% in July on higher energy bills

Britain’s annual inflation rate climbed in July in line with analysts’ expectations, official data showed Wednesday, driven by higher energy bills.
The Consumer Prices Index rose 2.9 percent in the 12 months to July, up from 2.6 percent in June, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement.
The rise was spurred by a 13 percent hike in the price cap on household energy bills that took effect last month, a consequence of the ongoing US-Iran war.
The ONS called it “the largest rise in gas prices for almost four years”.
Britain’s new Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged to ease cost-of-living pressures, unveiling measures such as a tax cut on household electricity prices ...