There is "little hope" of food prices "going anywhere but up" in the second half of 2025 due to changes announced in the Budget, a retail lobby group has warned. The costs of higher wages and National Insurance tax changes coming in April will be passed on to consumers, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said.

Shoppers at British store chains last month saw the sharpest fall in prices in more than three years but higher costs in 2025 mean retailers might struggle to keep inflation on its downward path, the British Retail Consortium said on Tuesday.

The BRC said there was ‘little hope of prices going anywhere but up’ amid higher national insurance, National Living Wage and packaging costs.