UK shop prices rise by least since December, BRC says

LONDON, July 28 (Reuters) - Average prices at British retailers rose by an annual 0.9% this month, the smallest increase since December 2025, as the men's soccer world cup triggered supermarket discounts on alcohol and snacks, the British Retail Consortium said on Tuesday.

"Retailers competed hard to limit prices rises, with a wave of summer promotions across food and other goods," BRC Chief Executive Helen Dickinson said, adding that some clothing and footwear retailers were also discounting summer items.

• BRC annual shop price inflation fell to 0.9% in July from 1.2% in June after a 0.1% drop on the month

• Food price inflation slowed to 2.2% from 2.4%, its lowest since February 2025

• Non-food inflation slowed to 0.2% from 0.6%, though electrical and health and beauty product prices rose due to higher semi-conductor and manufacturing costs

• The BRC survey was based on prices collected between July 1 and July 9

• The Office for National Statistics' broader consumer price inflation measure fell to a 15-month low of 2.6% in June

• Last month the Bank of England forecast CPI would rise to just over 3.25% later this year due to higher energy costs caused by the U.S.-Iran war

(Reporting by David Milliken, editing by Andy Bruce)