U.K. Inflation Is Dropping Toward Target as Oil Cheapens

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. inflation slowed to within a whisker of the Bank of England’s 2 percent target last month, thanks to cheaper oil, figures Wednesday are forecast to show. Consumer prices probably rose an annual 2.1 percent, the least in almost two years and well below the 2.4 percent predicted by the BOE just two months ago. The cost of filling up a car plunged about 4.5 percent during December, bringing further relief to consumers now enjoying a return to real pay growth.

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