UK inflation anticipated to stay sticky in February

Core annual inflation is estimated to ease a little to 3.6%, down from 3.7% in January. But overall, that’s still a high figure that won’t provide the BOE with much comfort. Meanwhile, headline annual inflation is expected to remain unchanged at 3.0%. As energy inflation becomes less of a drag, it will be a tricky outlook for UK inflation this year. The monthly readings exemplify that with both headline and core monthly estimates expected to show a 0.5% increase. One of the BOE’s main focus is on services inflation and that continues to sit stubbornly high, estimated to keep closer to 5% still later today. Here’s a summary of forecasts by analysts ahead of the release (h/t @ MNI Markets):