Official figures show consumer price inflation in Britain dipping for the first time since June partly because of a fall in the price of games and toys in the run-up to Christmas.

The Office for National Statistics said Tuesday that the annual inflation rate fell to 3 percent in December from 3.1 percent the previous month.

Inflation in Britain spiked sharply higher after the country voted to leave the European Union in June 2016, a decision that saw the pound tank. That stoked inflation by raising the cost of imported goods such as food and oil.

However, with the impact of the pound's drop falling out of the annual data, many economists expect a steady decline in inflation this year toward the Bank of England's target of 2 percent.