Discounts fuel December shop price slide
UK shop prices slipped deeper into deflationary territory in December, falling 0.6% on last year compared to the 0.1% decline in November.
According to the figures from The British Retail Consortium and Nielsen in their monthly shop price index, this was the deepest deflation since March 2017.
Helen Dickinson, BRC chief executive, said: “After several months of shop prices teetering on the edge of inflation, December saw them retreat deeper into deflationary territory.”
Non-food prices fell at their quickest pace since January 2017, declining by 2.1% year-on year.
Meanwhile, food inflation gathered steam with a rise of 1.8% in December, up from 1.5% in November. Fresh food inflation increased to 2% from November’s 1.3% rate while ambient food inflation rose by 1.7% year-on-year, which was slightly down from the 1.8% recorded in November.
Dickinson added: “Food inflation picked-up pace this month, fuelled by climbing global food prices earlier in the year. While retailers will continue to do their best to absorb cost increases for their customers, the challenges to the industry remain stark with more inflationary pressures in the pipeline.”
