Inflation in 1998 and its effect on pound value
£1 in 1997 is equivalent in purchasing power to about £1.03 in 1998. The pound had an average inflation rate of 3.43% per year between 1997 and 1998, producing a cumulative price increase of 3.43%. Purchasing power decreased by 3.43% in 1998 compared to 1997. On average, you would have to spend 3.43% more money in 1998 than in 1997 for the same item.
This means that prices in 1998 are 1.03 times as high as average prices since 1997, according to the Office for National Statistics composite price index.
The inflation rate in 1997 was 3.14%. The inflation rate in 1998 was 3.43%. The 1998 inflation rate is higher compared to the average inflation rate of 3.09% per year between 1998 and 2024.
Inflation rate is calculated by change in the composite price index (CPI). The CPI in 1998 was 642.60. It was 621.30 in the previous year, 1997. The difference in CPI between the years is used by the Office for National Statistics to officially determine inflation.
⌃
| Average inflation rate | 3.43% |
| Converted amount £1 base | £1.03 |
| Price difference £1 base | £0.03 |
| CPI in 1997 | 621.300 |
| CPI in 1998 | 642.600 |
| Inflation in 1997 | 3.14% |
| Inflation in 1998 | 3.43% |
| £1 in 1997 | £1.03 in 1998 |
How to calculate inflation rate for £1, 1997 to 1998
Our calculations use the following inflation rate formula to calculate the change in value between 1997 and 1998:
CPI in 1998 CPI in 1997
×
1997 GBP value
=
1998 GBP value
Then plug in historical CPI values. The U.K. CPI was 621.3 in the year 1997 and 642.6 in 1998:
642.6621.3
×
£1
=
£1.03
£1 in 1997 has the same "purchasing power" or "buying power" as £1.03 in 1998.
To get the total inflation rate for the 1 years between 1997 and 1998, we use the following formula:
CPI in 1998 - CPI in 1997CPI in 1997
×
100
=
Cumulative inflation rate (1 years)
Plugging in the values to this equation, we get:
642.6 - 621.3621.3
×
100
=
3%
Data source & citation
Raw data for these calculations comes from the composite price index published by the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS). A composite index is created by combining price data from several different published sources, both official and unofficial. The Consumer Price Index, normally used to compute inflation, has only been tracked since 1988. All inflation calculations after 1988 use the Office for National Statistics' Consumer Price Index, except for the current year, which is based on The Bank of England's forecast.
You may use the following MLA citation for this page: “Inflation Rate in 1998 | UK Inflation Calculator.” Official Inflation Data, Alioth Finance, 12 Dec. 2024, https://www.officialdata.org/UK-inflation-rate-in-1998.
Special thanks to QuickChart for their chart image API, which is used for chart downloads.
in2013dollars.com is a reference website maintained by the Official Data Foundation.
| Average inflation rate | 3.43% |
| Converted amount £1 base | £1.03 |
| Price difference £1 base | £0.03 |
| CPI in 1997 | 621.300 |
| CPI in 1998 | 642.600 |
| Inflation in 1997 | 3.14% |
| Inflation in 1998 | 3.43% |
| £1 in 1997 | £1.03 in 1998 |