Inflation

The UK inflation rate fell to 3.6% in January, down from 4.2% in December, official figures show

MPs have called on the government to protect company pensions during international takeovers following the on-going dispute between Heineken and Scottish & Newcastle scheme members.

Guaranteeing indexation has increased the cost of providing defined benefit pensions by 12% over the past 20 years, according to Pension Corporation research.

The latest inflation figures will bring home the effect of the switch from RPI to CPI for scheme members as the gap between the two widens, warns an inflation expert.

The government is considering scrapping indexation for defined benefit pension schemes as part of its promise to reinvigorate occupational pensions, the pensions minister confirms.

The overwhelming majority of pension schemes are highly vulnerable to future inflation rises, according to a joint survey by Redington and Pension Corporation.

UK CPI inflation fell from 5% to 4.8% in November, the Office for National Statistics has said, in line with economists' forecasts.

Listen to our latest Pensions Conjecture debate on Inflation.

A 90% surge in interest rate hedging and a 14% increase in inflation hedging drove the value of scheme liabilities hedged in the third quarter of the year above £22bn, research shows.

Short-term inflation remains a "headache" for schemes and sponsors, despite a fall in the inflation rate in October.