LONDON (Reuters) – British manufacturers’ expectations for how much they would raise their prices fell to a nine-month low in June, in a rare sign of softening price pressures at a time when consumer price inflation is soon expected to reach double digits.
The Confederation of British Industry’s monthly industrial price expectations balance – which show firms’ expectations for selling prices over the next three months – dropped to +58 in June from +75 in May, its lowest reading since September.
The headline industrial orders gauge fell to +18 in June from May’s +26.
“We may be seeing the first signs that weaker activity is beginning to slow the pace of price increases in the sector,” CBI deputy chief economist Anna Leach said.
(Reporting by David Milliken, editing by Andy Bruce)