U.K. Inflation Surges to Fastest Since 2014 as Pound Slumps

U.K. inflation accelerated to the fastest pace in more than two years in December as the pound’s decline drove a surge in import costs. Consumer-price growth increased to 1.6 percent, the highest since July 2014, from 1.2 percent in November. That beat the 1.4 percent median forecast of economists. A separate report showed the cost of imports soared at the fastest annual rate in more than five years.