Sluggish UK economy likely to hold back inflation

Despite the weakness in core inflation, many economists expect a post-Brexit bounce

For a country that has had so much trouble controlling the cost of living, the recent performance of prices in Britain has been extraordinary. Inflation has been below the government's 2% target for more than two years. For the best part of 18 months it has been running at under 0.5%. It fell in April to stand at just 0.3%.

To be sure, there were some one-off factors at play. The early timing of Easter made a difference, because air fares rose sharply to coincide with the holiday period in March and then fell back again last month. The drop in the cost of clothing and footwear almost certainly had something to do with the dismal weather.

Related: UK inflation drops as air fares fall