UK inflation since 1948

Inflation in the UK has remained steady at 2.7% in December. Get the full data over time - and see how it compares with pay
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How pay has fallen behind inflation

UK inflation stood at 2.7% in December 2012, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed today - unchanged from November.

What has kept inflation high? The ONS blames the rising cost of food and home energy bills. Josephine Moulds writes today:

Five of the big six energy companies introduced price rises in December, hitting some 25m households. That was partially offset by a decline in petrol prices, which fell by 2.8p a litre between November and December.

Living standards have been falling consistently over the past twelve months, as inflation has run well above the rate of pay increases, which the latest labour market data showed averaging at less than 2%.

Measured on the retail prices index (RPI), which includes mortgage interest payments, the inflation rate was 3.1% in December, up from 3% in November.

The ONS publish two measures of inflation. The consumer price index (CPI) measure of inflation which we have quoted above. In September 2011, when the CPI stood at 5.2%, it had never been higher in recorded history.

The second measure is the retail price index (RPI) which stands at 3.1% for December, up from from 3% in November. We have also added in pay data - and you can see how inflation has been racing ahead of average earnings. Even with the falls in previous months, people's wages are not increasing as fast as the cost of living.

There are some important differences between the two ways the ONS measures inflation. The government prefers the consumer price index, which also includes services, housing, electricity, food, and transportation, but the retail price index covers more items. The RPI includes housing costs and is used for many pay negotiations and used to be used for pension payments. We've included both here - just click on the links on the spreadsheet. You can get the full list of items in the inflation basket here.

If you want to see how different elements of inflation have changed, check out this interactive data explorer from Timetric.

We have gathered all the data for inflation since June 1948. Let us know what you can do with this data.

To find out more about how RPI and CPI differ, explore this set of interactive charts. The graphics show a breakdown of the different measures and components of inflation, and you can compare rates between countries.