At last, shopping is getting cheaper. Let’s not look this gift horse in the mouth

‘The economy has entered deflation,’ announces the BBC news presenter, as if this was a kind of recession. Au contraire. Shopping bills are shrinking, and this is unalloyed good news. The cost of living has been a problem in recent years, but now petrol prices are plunging and the cost of goods (i.e., shopping) is now 2.1 per cent lower than a year ago. The cost of services is up by 2.4 per cent, so technically that means zero inflation – contra the BBC headline. But the overall point holds: stuff is getting cheaper.

[datawrapper chart=”http://static.spectator.co.uk/pICZY/index.html”]

The prices of clothing is down month-on-month for the first time since the CPI inflation index was invented. Food, fuel bills, booze: all were cheaper in March than in February, according to the ONS. And cheaper than a year ago.

Yes, the pointy-heads will say that there is a theoretical risk that this good deflation means people stop spending, and wait for a better deal.