UK data Wednesday is set to reveal a sharp drop in inflation, which would ease a cost-of-living crisis for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's embattled government.
Analysts' consensus forecast is for the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to have fallen below five percent in October.
Prices rose 6.7 percent in September from 12 months earlier, which was the highest level among G7 rich nations.
Sunak, who this week carried out a major reshuffle of his cabinet before a general election next year which his Conservative party is forecast to lose, pledged to halve inflation in 2023. It stood at just above 10 percent in January.
- Inflation remains high -
"It looks like inflation will hit the government's target well before the end of the year -- falling below five percent in October," noted Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown.
"After rising through the summer and early autumn, petrol prices fell in October... Meanwhile, early indications show that food inflation is likely to have fallen for another month too -- and the prices of some staples including milk and pasta may actually have dropped."
Analysts said a sharp fall in the annual inflation rate could see finance minster Jeremy Hunt cut taxes in his latest budget announcement due next week.
