Source: Sharecast
The consumer prices index ticked up to 3.1% year-on-year last month from 2.9% in July. The ONS said transport, particularly motor fuels, made the largest upward contribution to the change in CPI. Fuel prices rose 23% in the 12 months to August, compared with a 15.5% increase the previous month.
On a monthly basis, CPI rose 0.5% in August, up from 0.3% in August 2025.
ONS chief economist Grant Fitzner said: "Sharp rises for petrol and diesel pushed inflation up again in August.
"Higher airfares, particularly for long-haul journeys, also contributed to the increase.
"Rising crude oil and petrol prices increased both the annual cost of raw materials and the price of goods leaving factories respectively."
The latest inflation reading came ahead of a policy announcement on Thursday from the Bank of England, which is widely expected to hold rates steady at 3.75%.
Adam Deasy, economist at PwC UK, said the BoE has a difficult task, balancing a worsening external price shock against a domestic economy sending mixed signals.
"Oil prices are now above $100 a barrel, similar to the most adverse of the three scenarios the Bank of England set out in July; gas prices are currently exceeding that scenario’s assumptions," he said. "But while inflationary pressures build, the UK’s labour market continues to weaken, suggesting some areas of growing fragility in the economy. At the same time, July GDP has surprised to the upside.
"That leaves the Bank in wait-and-see mode, but with less room for comfort. Monetary policy won’t shift the energy markets, nor the machinations of global geopolitics, but it may prevent inflation becoming embedded in wages and prices. That’s what the Bank will be watching for and where it’s probably too soon to say."