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Introduction: UK consumer prices rose in June
Computer games got pricier, but crisps prices fell
First increase in inflation since pandemic began
Coronavirus – latest updates
See all our coronavirus coverage

8.09am BST
UK fuel costs also remained low last month... although millions of people under lockdown won’t have really benefited.
Average petrol prices stood at 106.5 pence per litre in June 2020, slightly higher than May’s four-year low. Average diesel prices were 112.7 pence per litre in June, the lowest since August 2016, the Office for National Statistics reports.
8.00am BST
Despite the pick-up in consumer prices in June, City economists don’t expect inflation to keep rising.
Paul Dales of Capital Economics predicts that inflation could fall below zero this summer, as retailers try to lure anxious consumers to spend.
Inflation in all major core categories except restaurants and hotels fell, with the increase in clothing inflation (from -3.1% in May to -2.2% in June) and the rise in recreation and culture inflation (from +2.0% to +2.6%) making the largest contributions. We are not convinced either will be sustained.
We suspect that after the initial release of pent up demand once non-essential retailers opened in mid-June, retailers will have to use heavier discounts to get people through the doors. And a large part of the rise in recreation and culture was due to a jump in games, toys and hobbies inflation from +1.0% to +7.9%, which bounces around at the best of times.
The small rise in CPI inflation in June is nothing to worry about. It was driven by the volatile computer games component. We still expect the headline rate to fall a bit further in Q3. The data won't stand in the way of the MPC doing more to stimulate the economy later this year pic.twitter.com/rQG1PFTkot
Muted inflation paves the way for further action from the Bank of England as economic activity remains anaemic
UK inflation remained well below target in June, despite the slight uptick due to a rise in the price of popular computer games and the more spread-out sales of clothing since the lockdown. https://t.co/fUacbm3QMq Continue reading...