The unexpected and welcome drop was not predicted by economists who expected a rate of 1.9%, raising hopes that the next move on interest rates will be a 0.25% cut in the base rate of 5% when the Bank meets in early November.

Inflation was driven down by falls in fuel prices and transport costs, particularly for air fares which had risen over the summer. On the downside, food and soft drinks pushed up the rate with rises of 1.8% driven by increases in dairy and fruit prices.

The latest September figure was down from 2.2% inflation in August 2024, and well below its peak of 11.1% in October 2022.