UK CPI inflation eased modestly in October, with the headline index rising +0.4% MoM and +3.6% YoY (vs 3.6% YoY expected), reflecting a slight deceleration from September growth of +3.8% YoY, driven mainly by weaker housing and household services inflation.

• Core CPI (excluding food, energy, alcohol and tobacco) eased to +3.4% YoY (vs 3.4% YoY expected) in October, down from +3.5% YoY in September and increased +0.3% MoM, marking its lowest annual reading since December 2024.
• Food and non-alcoholic beverages inflation accelerated to +4.9% YoY (Sep: +4.5%) and rose +0.5% MoM, making the largest upward contribution to the monthly rate.
• Housing and household services inflation slowed sharply to +5.2% YoY (Sep: +7.3%) and rose +0.7% MoM, delivering the largest downward pull on headline inflation.
• Goods inflation declined to +2.6% YoY (Sep: +2.9%) with prices up +0.5% MoM, pointing to a continued cooling in goods-related pressures.
• Services inflation ticked down to +4.5% YoY (Sep: +4.7%), with a +0.2% MoM increase, its lowest annual rate since late 2024.
• Communication prices fell -0.2% MoM (Sep: +0.2%), contributing to the overall deceleration.
• Education posted the strongest monthly rise at +3.6% MoM, though its YoY rate edged up only slightly to +7.6% (Sep: +7.2%).