More on the UK inflation figures, which could prove a problem for the country’s economy, says our economics editor Larry Elliott:

The level of inflation poses a risk to the UK economy but not in the way that you might think. Inflation is worryingly low rather than worryingly high.

That may seem a perverse idea at a time when the cost of living as measured by the consumer prices index has risen to its highest level in a year...

[But] core inflation - the measure of the cost of living that strips out food, fuel and the impact of the chancellor’s decisions on excise duties in the budget - fell from 1.4% in December to 1.2% in January.

None of this is a problem at the moment. Inflation at 0.3% coupled with earnings growth of 2% means that real incomes are growing at a reasonably healthy rate. That should help to underpin the economy over the coming months...

But low inflation could become a big problem if it morphs into deflation, which means a prolonged period of falling prices rather than the sporadic dips into negative territory seen in 2015.