UK Inflation Rises to 3.5% as Fuel Costs Lift Prices

Britain's annual inflation rate climbed to 3.5% in September from 3.1% in August, official figures showed on Wednesday. The reading exceeded the 3.4% forecast in a Reuters poll and was the highest since October 2025.

The Office for National Statistics said transport, particularly motor fuels, made the biggest upward contribution to the change in the annual rate. Restaurants and hotels provided the largest partial offset. Consumer prices rose 0.4% over the month.

The increase was not confined to energy. Core CPI, which excludes energy, food, alcohol and tobacco, rose to 2.8% from 2.6%. Services inflation accelerated to 3.7% from 3.4%, above the 3.6% economists had expected, according to Reuters.

The figures complicate the policy outlook ahead of next week's budget. Reuters said the release could add to the case for a Bank of England rate increase in November, while intensifying calls for help for households facing higher energy bills.

For households, the figures point to renewed pressure on purchasing power. For policymakers, firmer core and services inflation signal a challenge extending beyond fuel. The data do not settle the next rate decision.

Sources: Reuters report via MarketScreener; ONS: September 2026 consumer price inflation.

Archival photo: petrol station in Staines-upon-Thames, England, 2025. DanielMichaelPerry / Wikimedia Commons, CC0. Cropped to 16:9 by Morval Universal.