The cost of goods leaving British factories jumped in April to a record high on the back of rising costs for raw materials, official data showed on May 12.
Producer prices rose 1.4% in April from March, Britain's Office for National Statistics said. They increased by 7.5% in April compared with 12 months earlier, it added. Both the monthly and the annual rate of output price growth were the highest since records began in 1986.
The data easily beat market expectations for a monthly gain of 0.6% and an annual reading of 6.4%.
The increase reflected higher costs for manufacturing, tobacco, alcohol and petrol products, the ONS said.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2008
