Good morning: Inflation unexpectedly eased to 0.4 per cent in February as the price of clothes and second-hand cars fell, according to data released this morning by the Office for National Statistics. The headline annual rate of inflation fell to 0.4 per cent in February, down from 0.7 per cent in January. Economists had forecast a 0.8 per cent rise. SponsoredJonathan Athow, deputy national statistician at the ONS, said: “A fall in clothing prices helped to ease inflation in February, traditionally a month where we would see these prices rise, but the impact of the pandemic has disrupted standard seasonal patterns.”Later this morning (9.30am) we get the closely watched flash PMI report for March — economists expect a reading of 51.1, up from 49.8

Source: The Times March 24, 2021 09:00 UTC