British consumer price inflation has risen to 3.3 per cent in March from 3.0pc in February, according to official data showing the first impact on prices from the Iran war which the Bank of England worries could lead to a return of persistently high inflation, Reuters reports.

Factory gate prices also jumped and by much more than expected, the figures from the Office for National Statistics showed on Wednesday.

Economists said the increases — driven largely by fuel — were unlikely to push the BoE’s Monetary Policy Committee into raising interest rates as soon as next week’s meeting and the key question was whether the jump in energy prices would ignite a broader inflation problem.