Finance
UK shop prices ease in May but cost pressures are building, BRC says
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on May 27, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on May 27, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
UK shop prices fell 0.1% in May, but food prices rose 2.8%, indicating rising cost pressures, according to the BRC.
(Reuters) -British shop prices fell slightly overall this month but food price inflation accelerated, according to a survey on Tuesday from the British Retail Consortium which warned price pressures are on the rise again.
Overall shop prices fell by 0.1% in annual terms, as they did in April, the BRC said, as non-food prices declined at a faster rate.
However, food prices were up 2.8% in May in annual terms, compared with a 2.6% rise in April.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said retailers were now dealing with the cost of higher payroll taxes and an increase in the national minimum wage.
"It is no surprise that inflation is rearing its head once again," Dickinson said, adding that a new packaging tax and new labour market laws could further increase costs.
Official last week showed Britain suffered a bigger-than-expected consumer price inflation surge in April, prompting investors to bet on the Bank of England slowing its already gradual pace of interest rate cuts.
The BoE has predicted that inflation will hit 3.7% by September.
(Reporting by Andy Bruce; editing by Suban Abdulla)
Overall shop prices fell by 0.1% in annual terms in May, similar to the decline seen in April.
Food prices increased by 2.8% in May, up from a 2.6% rise in April.
Retailers are facing higher payroll taxes, an increase in the national minimum wage, and new packaging taxes, which could further escalate costs.
The Bank of England has predicted that inflation will reach 3.7% by September.
The British Retail Consortium warned that inflation is rearing its head again due to various cost pressures affecting retailers.
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