Surprise jump in UK grocery inflation makes interest rate cut less probable
Shoppers faced a surprise jump in grocery inflation last month, as experts warned there was worse to come if there was prolonged war in the Middle East and the odds of a UK interest cut fell sharply.In a blow to households struggling with the cost of living, grocery price inflation rose to 4.3% in the four weeks to 22 February, after falling to 4% in January from 4.7% in December, according to the market research company Worldpanel by Numerator.The European Central Bank’s chief economist, Philip Lane, also warned that prolonged war in the Middle East could lead to lower oil and gas supplies from the region, causing a “substantial spike” in inflation and a “sharp drop in output” in the eurozone.
The prospect of a UK interest rate cut later this month receded on Tuesday morning, as UK government borrowing costs rose amid fears in the City over a potential spike in inflation.The interest rate, or yield, on two-year bonds has risen by 13.5 basis points (bps), while the 10-year yield jumped by 11bps and 30-year yields were up 9bps.Financial markets indicated a 29% chance of a cut this month, down from 80% last week.The crisis has already driven oil and gas sharply higher, threatening to push up prices at the pump for UK drivers and increase household gas and electricity bills.
In an interview with the Financial Times, the ECB’s Lane said “directionally, a jump in energy prices puts upward pressure on inflation, especially in the near term”, and that such a development would be “negative” for growth.This would also apply to the UK.Inflation in the eurozone rose to an annual rate of 1.9% in February, according to a preliminary estimate from the EU’s statistics agency released on Tuesday.This was higher than economists had expected, and up from 1.
7% in January.Fraser McKevitt, the head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel, said: “Looking ahead to Easter, shoppers will notice that chocolate prices remain high, up 9.3% year on year.“While this is still a significant rise, the pace of inflation in the category is beginning to ease and is now at its lowest level since September 2025.”However, Greggs said “easing inflationary pressures” should boost stronger consumer spending, as it revealed a near-18% drop in pre-tax profits to £167.
4m in the year to 27 December.The Worldpanel report showed shoppers splashed out on recent celebrations.Pre-made pancake mixes were up 114% from the previous week in the seven days leading up to Shrove Tuesday, while those making their own batter paid 42p or almost 6% more than last year as the cost of key ingredients reached £7.77.Nonetheless, sales of ingredients surged, with flour up 34%, sugar rising by 17% and lemons up 70%.
Many shoppers left Valentine’s Day spending until the last minute, with almost 12% of households picking up a premium meal deal on Friday night alone, according to Worldpanel,Steak buyers sprang into action later in the week, with sales peaking on Friday and Valentine’s Day itself,Chocolate lovers also left it late, with Friday the single biggest day for purchases of Valentine’s Day chocolate,People splashed out on premium dine-in experiences,In total, they spent £39m on high-end meal deals priced at £10 or more in the week leading up to Valentine’s Day, seven times higher than the previous week.
More people have been doing their grocery shopping online, with sales made through the internet up 9,7% year on year,More than 18m orders were placed over the four weeks, which meant online shopping made up 13% of total grocery sales, the highest level since July 2021,The online retailer Ocado was once again the fastest-growing grocer over the 12 weeks to 22 February, clinging to that spot since September, with 15,1% sales growth and a 2.
1% share of the market,The discounter Lidl recorded double-digit sales growth for the 12th consecutive month, up 10% and 7,8% market share,Tesco, the biggest supermarket chain, increased sales by 4,5% to raise its market share to 28.
5%, while Sainsbury’s upped its market share to 16.1% as sales rose by 5.2%.Waitrose, part of the John Lewis Partnership, achieved its highest rate of sales growth since March 2021, at 5.6%, to reach market share of 4.
8%, a three-year high.Asda once again recorded a dip in sales year on year, this time by 2.6%, while Co-op’s sales were down 1.6%.
US military reportedly used Claude in Iran strikes despite Trump’s ban
The US military reportedly used Claude, Anthropic’s AI model, to inform its attack on Iran despite Donald Trump’s decision, announced hours earlier, to sever all ties with the company and its artificial intelligence tools.The use of Claude during the massive joint US-Israel bombardment of Iran that began on Saturday was reported by the Wall Street Journal and Axios. It underlines the complexity of the US military withdrawing powerful AI tools from its missions when the technology is already intricately embedded in operations.According to the Journal, US military command used the tools for intelligence purposes, as well as to help select targets and carry out battlefield simulations.On Friday, just hours before the Iran attack began, Trump ordered all federal agencies to stop using Claude immediately
Datacentre developers face calls to disclose effect on UK’s net emissions
Datacentre developers are facing pressure to reveal whether their projects will increase the UK’s net greenhouse gas emissions, amid concerns the sites could double national electricity demand.Campaign groups have written to the UK technology secretary, Liz Kendall, warning that the energy required by new AI infrastructure poses a “serious threat to efforts to decarbonise the electricity grid”.Developers should demonstrate that their projects will not cause an increase in the UK’s overall CO2 emissions or local water scarcity, as part of a forthcoming national policy statement (NPS) on datacentres, the letter says.“Without these commitments, such vast electricity use will inevitably generate vast climate emissions,” the campaigners write.The letter is signed by Foxglove, a group that campaigns against big tech dominance, and five other non-governmental organisations including the environmental campaign group Friends of the Earth
OpenAI to work with Pentagon after Anthropic dropped by Trump over company’s ethics concerns
OpenAI said it had struck a deal with the Pentagon to supply AI to classified US military networks, hours after Donald Trump ordered the government to stop using the services of one of the company’s main competitors.Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, announced the move on Friday night. It came after an agreement between Anthropic, a rival AI company that runs the Claude system, and the Trump administration broke down after Anthropic sought assurances its technology would not be used for mass surveillance – nor for autonomous weapons systems that can kill people without human input.Announcing the deal, Altman insisted that OpenAI’s agreement with the government included assurances that it would not be used to those ends.“Two of our most important safety principles are prohibitions on domestic mass surveillance and human responsibility for the use of force, including for autonomous weapon systems,” Altman wrote on X
Her husband wanted to use ChatGPT to create sustainable housing. Then it took over his life.
On 7 August, Kate Fox received a phone call that upended her life. A medical examiner said that her husband, Joe Ceccanti – who had been missing for several hours – had jumped from a railway overpass and died. He was 48.Fox couldn’t believe it. Ceccanti had no history of depression, she said, nor was he suicidal – he was the “most hopeful person” she had ever known
Suicide forum found to be in breach of Online Safety Act after failing to block UK users
A suicide forum linked to deaths in Britain has been ruled provisionally in breach of the Online Safety Act after it failed to properly block access to UK users when ordered to do so last year.Ofcom, the online regulator, said it could now apply to the courts to demand internet service providers block access to the site in the UK. This will depend on how the site, which also faces fines, responds over the next 10 days.Coroners had been raising concerns about the links between the forum and suicides in the UK since at least 2019, campaigners said. The family of 17-year-old Vlad Nikolin-Caisley, from Southampton, said he took his own life in 2024 after using the site, which Ofcom is not naming
OpenAI announces $110bn funding round that would value firm at $840bn
OpenAI said on Friday it is raising $110bn in a blockbuster funding round that would value the ChatGPT maker at $840bn, in a deal that signals the feverish pace of investment in artificial intelligence.It’s more than double the amount the company raised last year, when it racked up $40bn in the largest private tech deal on record.This year’s funding round, which is still open, includes a $30bn investment from SoftBank, $30bn from Nvidia, and $50bn from Amazon, and comes ahead of the AI startup’s expected mega-IPO later this year. Even more investors are expected to join.“We’re super excited about this deal,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told CNBC on Friday
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