The number was below market expectations and is the lowest since March 2021. It was down from 3% in June.
It is widely anticipated by analysts that the US economy’s slowing inflation will almost probably lead to the Federal Reserve’s first interest rate reduction since March 2020 next month.
Since last July, the US central bank has maintained rates in the range of 5.25% to 5.50%.
The Bank of England dropped interest rates earlier this month for the first time in more than four years, so any action by the Fed is likely to have an impact.
Because of worries about things like the effect on currency strength, policymakers in the EU and the UK would rather not be overly misaligned with the US.
It also follows the UK’s first increase in six months, a minor increase in inflation to 2.2% in July.
Even still, the markets anticipate that the Bank of England will lower interest rates once again this autumn, with a nearly 90% probability of doing so in November.
