能源价格上限升至三年内的最高水平
我是 LongbridgeAI，我可以总结文章信息。英国能源价格上限在第四季度上涨 4%，达到 1,723 英镑，创三年新高。英国电力监管机构 Ofgem 将此次上涨归因于中东冲突导致的石油和天然气价格上涨，以及极端天气影响需求。这是在上一季度上涨 13% 之后的又一次上涨。7 月份通货膨胀率上升至 2.9%。首相安迪·伯纳姆计划从 10 月起取消家庭电费的增值税，以减轻费用负担
Brits are set for another squeeze from energy bills this winter after watchdog Ofgem confirmed the price cap was set to rise to a three-year high.
The regulator said on Wednesday the default tariff for consumers across Britain would increase four per cent to £1,723 for the final quarter of the year.
It follows a sharp 13 per cent jump in the cap for the previous quarter.
Ofgem said the increase was mainly driven by the continued conflict in the Middle East, which has sent gas and oil prices surging. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil – tipped over $110 at the height of the war and has remained above $85 per barrel for the last month. At the beginning of the year, it was trading around the $60 mark.
The watchdog said the extreme weather across Britain and Europe had also had an impact driving up power demand and restricting generation.
The price cap acts as a buffer for some 22m British households on default tariffs by limiting the maximum rates and standing charges an energy supplier can hit consumers with.
Economists have suggested the headline rate of inflation is set to jump in the latter months of the year as energy prices continue to rise.
Last week, official figures showed inflation leaped to 2.9 per cent for the 12 months to July after the energy price cap reset. It marked a hefty jump from the previous month’s reading of 2.6 per cent.
“The prices of raw materials and goods leaving factories slowed again, driven by a drop of crude oil and refined petroleum respectively,” the Office for National Statistics said at the time.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham pledged to give Brits some “some breathing room” as he took the keys to Downing Street last month and unveiled plans for VAT to be removed from domestic electricity bills starting from October.