Yahoo Finance Jeremy Hunt to meet regulators to stop companies exploiting price rises
UK inflation remains at 8.7%
UK chancellor Jeremy Hunt is set to meet a group of regulators this week to examine what they are doing about companies exploiting rapid inflation.
He will meet the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), alongside Ofgem, Ofwat and Ofcom on Wednesday, in a hope to combat both existing and future price rises for consumers. This comes in response to claims that companies are profiteering at a time when consumers are struggling.
The news comes as the rate of inflation in the UK remains at 8.7%.
Last week, the Bank of England raised interest rates again to a 15-year high, from 4.5% to 5%, to try to bring it under control.
Utility companies and supermarkets have claimed they are keeping price rises to a minimum, avoiding passing costs on as wage and energy bills creep up. Hunt is set to back a CMA review of food prices.
Read more: UK faces further price rises and interest rate hikes
The moves follow crisis talks between the chancellor and mortgage lenders on Friday which were organised to help manage the spiralling costs for home owners.
Among other measures, he said that lenders had agreed to allow borrowers to extend the term of their mortgages or move to an interest-only plan temporarily.
On Sunday, prime minister Rishi Sunak said Britons should "hold our nerve" on high interest rates. He added there is "no alternative" to quelling inflation.
Watch: Sunak says he is willing to be unpopular over public sector pay
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