UK (CU)_ As global inflation soars resulting from the stagnations or a decline of the economies as a result of the recent pandemic together with the Russia-Ukraine war which is putting a strain energy supplies across the world, Citi bank has predicted an increase of 18.6% for next year. This is likely to further strain consumers already struggling with rising prices who have been cutting back on essentials such as food and energy and are running out of options on further cut backs.
Ofgem the UKs government regulator for the electricity and downstream natural gas markets is set to redefine tariffs for October, the regulators non-executive director Christine Farnish recently resigned stating that they gave too much benefit to companies at the expense of consumers.
Many of the UKs lowest income households generally use prepaid meters and often have to choose between food or energy which will be an even bigger challenge during the winter season, are likely to be hit the hardest as many charities have seen increasing numbers with people struggling for essentials. Prior campaigns to insulate cavity walls which could significantly reduce energy consumption have been made use of by many UK householders and now with record inflation set to kick in, insulation will be needed more than ever.
Citi further predicts the bills to increase every 3 months from October this year by over a thousand pounds. Across the world and for most of the commonwealth inflation has taken a toll in one form or the other where commonwealth nations in south Asia made the headlines in recent weeks where we saw endless ques for gas, kerosine oil and petrol in Sri Lanka and many reports have also indicated that Pakistan may soon head in Sri Lankas direction. These bleak predictions most definitely require urgent solutions as lower income and even middle-income households struggle to survive.
