Britain's CPI up to 3.3 pct in March amid fuel price rises

Britain's consumer price index (CPI) rose by 3.3 percent year on year in March, up from those recorded in January and February as the Middle East conflict has led to motor fuel price hikes, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Wednesday.

The country's inflation rate stood at three percent both in January and February 2026. On a monthly basis, CPI rose by 0.7 percent in March, compared with a rise of only 0.3 percent one year ago, according to the ONS.

It said motor fuels made the largest upward contribution to the change in CPI annual rates.

The overall motor fuel prices surged by 4.9 percent year on year in March, making a sharp contrast to a fall of 4.6 percent year on year in February, and hitting the highest level recorded since January 2023.

Britain's core CPI (CPI excluding energy, food, alcohol and tobacco) increased by 3.1 percent year on year in March, down from 3.2 percent registered in February, the data also showed.

The U.S. dollar increased in late trading on Wednesday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, went up 0.21 percent to 98.596 at 3 p.m. (1900 GMT).

In late New York trading, the euro lost to 1.1711 dollars from 1.1726 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound rose to 1.3510 dollars from 1.3482 dollars in the previous session.

The U.S. dollar bought 159.45 Japanese yen, lower than 159.59 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar added to 0.7842 Swiss francs from 0.7821 Swiss francs, and it dropped to 1.3666 Canadian dollars from 1.3673 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar advanced to 9.2063 Swedish kronor from 9.1997 Swedish kronor.