The British consumer price index increased at an annual rate of 3.4 percent compared with the rate of 3.0 percent in the previous month, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported on Tuesday.
The gain of British annual inflation is higher than the rate of 3.2 percent analysts had expected. The upward pressures to the change in CPI in Britain are widespread and the largest came from housing and household services.
The ONS report also showed that the retail price inflation gauge -- which includes a broader range of housing costs -- hit its highest since September 2008, rising to 4.4 percent in March from 3.7 percent in February.
On the month to month level, British consumer price inflation rose 0.6 percent in March, twice as fast as analysts expected and above the 0.4 percent rate recorded in February./.