LONDON — The pound has climbed almost 1% in late morning trade on Tuesday after the latest ONS data showed UK inflation accelerating to its highest level since 2013 during February.
The ONS said that the UK's consumer price index — the key measure of inflation — was 2.3%, up from 1.8% in January. That was actually bigger than the 2.1% rise that economists polled before the release expected.
Core inflation figures, which strip out volatile goods like oil and food, also rose, climbing from 1.6% in January to 2% in February, ahead of the 1.8% forecast.
The news, which could be perceived as increasing the possibility of an interest rate hike from the Bank of England, pushed sterling substantially upwards, with the currency climbing to a level not seen since late February.
By 11.15 a.m. GMT (7.15 a.m. ET) sterling has held onto those gains and is trading at 1.2469 against the dollar, an increase of 0.9% from the day's open.
Here is the chart:
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