Furniture prices fell in April as overall inflation eased to its lowest level in the UK for three years.
According to the latest Office for National for National Statistics (ONS) data, the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rose by 2.3% in the 12 months to April 2024, down from 3.2% in the 12 months to March. On a monthly basis, CPI rose by 0.3% in April 2024, compared with a rise of 1.2% in April 2023.
Furniture and furnishing prices fell by 3.1% in April, down from a decline of 2.3% in March, while down from an 8.3% rise compared to the same month last year.
The retail price of household furniture decreased by 2.9% in the month, down from a fall of 2.4%, while down from 8.6% last year.
Garden furniture prices fell 23.4%, down from 0.7% on last month and down from 4.5% compared to last year.
Carpets and other floorcoverings prices rose 1.7%, down from of 2.5% the previous month, while lower than the 9% rise last year.
Other household textile prices, including furnishings fabrics, curtains and bedding, saw prices rise by 0.5%, down from 1.9% the previous month, while down from 6.4% on last year.
Meanwhile, Producer Price Inflation (PPI) saw the rate of furniture output prices, factory gate, rise 2.9% in April on the same month in the previous year. The rate was lower than the rise of 3.3% in March. Furniture input prices, material cost of production, were down -1.9% in April on the same month last year, while down from a decline of -1.5% the previous month.
Producer input prices fell by 1.6% in the year to April 2024, up from a fall of 2.5% in the year to March 2024. Producer output (factory gate) prices rose by 1.1% in the year to April 2024, up from a revised increase of 0.7% in the year to March 2024. On a monthly basis, producer input prices rose by 0.6% and output prices rose by 0.2% in April 2024.
Commenting on the inflation data for April, ONS Chief Economist Grant Fitzner said: “There was another large fall in annual inflation led by lower electricity and gas prices, due to the reduction in the Ofgem energy price cap.
“Tobacco prices also helped pull down the rate, with no duty changes announced in the budget. Meanwhile food price inflation saw further falls over the year. These falls were partially offset by a small uptick in petrol prices.
“The prices of goods leaving factories have risen a little over the last year. Meanwhile, the prices of raw materials and fuels grew in the last month, though they remain below where they were a year ago.”
