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| UK inflation rate falls to 0.3% | UK inflation rate falls to 0.3% |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The UK's inflation rate, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index, fell to 0.3% in April, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). | The UK's inflation rate, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index, fell to 0.3% in April, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). |
| The fall, from March's rate of 0.5%, is the first since September. | The fall, from March's rate of 0.5%, is the first since September. |
| "Falls in air fares and prices for clothing, vehicles and social housing rent" were the main reasons for the drop in the rate, the ONS said. | |
| The Bank of England said last week that it expected inflation to increase in the second half of the year. | The Bank of England said last week that it expected inflation to increase in the second half of the year. |
| By far the largest downward effect came from air transport, with prices falling by 14.2%, compared with a rise of 4.5% between the same two months last year. | |
| This was influenced by the timing of the Easter holiday, which contributed to a large increase in fares between February and March 2016, which then fell away in April. | |
| An alternative inflation measure, the Retail Prices Index, which is still used to index some rents and pensions also fell from an annual rate of 1.6% in March to 1.3% in April . | |
| Meanwhile core inflation, which strips out energy, food, alcohol and tobacco, fell to 1.2%, compared with economists' expectations for 1.4%. | |
| CPI inflation has been below the the Bank of England's target of 2% for more than two years. | |
| The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted last week to keep interest rates unchanged at the record low of 0.5%. The Bank is not expected to raise rates until at least next year. | |
| In a separate report, the ONS said that there had been a surge in house prices as landlords rushed to buy before higher stamp duty was imposed. | |
| UK average house prices increased by 9.0% over the year to March 2016, up from 7.6% in the year to February 2016. |