The 25 things that are more expensive since the Brexit vote…and the few that are cheaper
IN what seems to be a common occurrence these days, Lego has become the latest company to announce it is raising its prices following the Brexit vote in June.
The toy retailer said that it will be increasing prices by five per cent next month as a “direct result of the continued devaluing of the UK pound."
Lego is just the latest in a long line of firms announcing price hikes because of cost increases caused by the falling pound.
Below, we look at the other items which are now, or soon will be, more expensive than they were before the EU referendum.
Why have prices risen since Brexit?
The pound has been trading at near 31-year lows against the US dollar since the Brexit vote in June, and as a result items are becoming costlier to buy in the UK.
This is because the cost of raw materials and the cost of importing has become more expensive, and manufacturers are passing this cost onto consumers.
1.LEGO prices up five per cent
According to a letter shared on social media earlier this week, from a top boss at Lego, prices will increase by five per cent from January 1 2017.
This means that a Star Wars Lego Death Star set currently priced at £399 will go up by £20 next year.
2. Marmite up 12.5 per cent at Morrisons
Unilever, the consumer goods brand, sparked a media frenzy in October when it announced it would be raising the prices of its products in the wake of the Brexit vote.
The company demanded steep price increases to offset the higher cost of imported goods, which are priced in euros and dollars.
This resulted in a bust-up with Tesco after it refused to stock Unilever product.
Morrisons was the first supermarket to hike prices, by 12.5 per cent.
3. Costly condiments
Other Unilever items that have gone up in price include condiment favourites Coleman's English mustard (170g), which has gone up by 10 per cent at Morrisons and Hellman's Real Mayonnaise (400g) which has gone up by 7.3 per cent across all supermarkets.
4. Christmas pudding up 21 per cent
Mintec analysts reported last month that the slumping pound has helped push up the cost of Christmas pudding by 21 per cent, because raisins, butter, flour and sugar have all gone up in price since November last year.
This has partially been attributed to the falling pound since the Brexit vote, with a lower sterling leading to a three per cent increase in the price of raisins, which are imported to the UK.
5. Primary school lunch £20 more expensive
A primary school in London wrote to parents in October to say that the cost of school dinners would be going up an extra £20 a year as a result of Brexit pushing up food prices.
According to , the school blamed the “depressed currency exchange rate” for the increasing costs, and said that suppliers were also passing on costs to consumers.
6. Price of bananas rise for first time in five years
Last month, supermarkets increased the price of bananas for the first time in five years amid continued pressure on the value of the pound.
Lidl and Aldi raised the price of a pack of bananas from 68p to 72p - a six per cent rise, while Asda raised the price of its loose bananas to 72p per kg.
7. Fish fingers to get stinkingly more expensive next year
Birds Eye threatened to raise the price of its fish fingers in November by up to five per cent because of the falling value of the pound.
The company said the price rise was necessary as many of its raw materials were priced in dollars and so its sterling costs had risen.
Wayne Hudson, Birds Eye’s UK and Ireland managing director, said: “Increasing costs is not a decision we take lightly, and the last time it was necessary to raise costs was in 2012.
"As such, we have been in open and collaborative conversations with the retailers for some time now and are working closely with them to minimise any impact on our customers.”
8. Walkers crisps set for 10 per cent price hike
Walkers, which is owned by PepsiCo, is understood to be seeking price rises of between five and ten per cent, taking a 32g bag of crisps from 50p to 55p.
A Walkers spokesperson said: “Whilst our potatoes are British, we import a number of different ingredients and materials to produce a finished packet of Walkers crisps, such as seasonings, oil for frying and key raw materials used in our packaging film.
“Fluctuating foreign exchange rates, supply pressure on key ingredients and the weakened value of the pound are impacting the import cost of some of our materials and affecting the price of material costs based on commodities that are traded in foreign currencies.”
9. Typhoo Tea 50 per cent more
The cost of a cup of Typhoo tea is set to rise after the company revealed a whopping 50 per cent price hike due to Brexit.
Typhoo boss Somnath Saha claims the cost of importing an 80kg bag of the tea has increased by 50 per cent – from £100 to £150 – since the start of this year.
Mr Saha said: “There is no other option. It’s one of the favourite drinks of this country. It’s very unfortunate. It’s nobody’s fault – it’s due to economic conditions.”
10. Maltesers packets are shrinking
Last month it was announced that global manufacturer Mars was shirnking the sizes of some products, including Maltesers “pouch” sized bags, reducing from 135g to 121g, and Galaxy Counters, which have shrunk from 126g to 112g.
11. Mind the gap: Toblerone changes to reduce weight
Product makers Mondelez International faced backlash last month when it increased the gap between the peaks on Toblerone bars in order to reduce the weight of them.
400g bars have been reduced to 360g and the 170g bars to 150g.
The company said: “Like many other companies, unfortunately we are experiencing higher costs for many ingredients.
“We carry these costs for as long as possible, but to ensure Toblerone remains on shelf, is affordable and retains the iconic shape we all know and love, we have had to reduce the weight of this particular bar."
12. Average basket of goods goes up
The Bank of England has predicted that inflation on an average basket of goods will increase from one per cent to 2.7 per cent by the end of 2017.
November's Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation rate was the highest since October 2014, when it was 1.3 per cent.
Sterling weakness continues to raise the cost of inputs for UK businesses, and there are signs these cost increases are slowly being passed on to consumers.
13. Turkeys up three per cent
Turkeys will be more expensive this Christmas, as the falling pound has pushed up the price of turkey feed.
Paul Kelly, who runs an organic turkey farm in Chelmsford told that the farm's 43,000 birds are fed on grain which is imported from South America.
The depreciation in sterling since the Brexit vote has pushed up the price of the turkey feed and subsequently the cost of his produce by three per cent, he said.
14. Butter soars by 80 per cent since Brexit
Harriet Hastings, managing director of luxury biscuit boutique Biscuiteers, also told Sky News that she is facing price hikes as a result of the Brexit vote.
She said she has seen the price of butter soar by 80 per cent since June.
"We're not seeing the full impact yet, but we will see the impact down the line. I think it's just a question of how long we can hold our pricing model and absorb those price increases," she said.
15. Washing machine manufacturers increase prices
According to earlier this year, European manufacturers of domestic appliances like washing machines and fridges are trying to increase prices for retailers in the UK by up to 10 per cent.
The price hike is to compensate for the collapse in the pound, they said.
16. Comic book issues to go up from Jan
Because comic books are laregly owned by US companies, they have been hugely affected by the Brexit vote.
that the cost of some issues will go up in January, with manufacturers blaming higher printing costs (and other costs, all of which are paid in dollars).
17. Car prices, including Vauxhall models, to go up
Car makers Ford, Vauxhall and Nissan are raising the prices of their new cars in the UK in response to the pound's collapse.
said that prices of Vauxhall models will rise by at least two per cent, but the hike still won't be enough to recoup money lost after the pound's fall against the euro.
18. New Apple macbooks cost a staggering £2k
During Apple's press event in October a new line of Macbooks were unveiled.
But for customers in the UK, the new range came with high prices, a likely result of the plummeting value of the pound.
The most basic model in the range starts at £1,449 and the most basic 15-inch model starts at a staggering £2,349.
19. Dell and HP computers raise prices
Dell put up its prices just a couple of weeks after the EU referendum vote, to compensate for its thin profit margins.
In a statement Dell said: "In line with the rest of the industry, our component costs are priced in US dollars, and unfortunately the recent strengthening of the US dollar versus sterling and other currencies in the EMEA region, following the UK’s decision to leave the European Union, will have a direct impact on the price we sell to our UK customers and partners."
A few days later, HP announced similar price increases of 10 per cent, to deal with "unprecedented" currency fluctuations following the Brexit vote.
20. Customers forking out more for holidays
Holidaymakers who have booked package holidays with Mark Warner Holidays have been forced to fork out an additional £50 surcharge per person as a result of currency fluctuations that came about because of June’s vote to leave the EU.
21. Mr Kipling cakes could get more expensive
Premier Foods which owns Mr Kipling has announced plans to raise prices to limit the impact Brexit has had on food prices.
The company's CEO Gavin Darby said the cost of butter had risen 80 per cent, wheat 40 per cent and sugar more than 20 per cent.
He said: "we can't say there won't be any price increases, there probably will be next year".
22. Drinkers to shell out 29p more for wine
Because the UK imports so much wine from Europe, particularly Italy and France, the fall in sterling is expected to lead to price rises.
According to Britain's leading wine trade body, consumers may soon have to pay an extra 29p on average for a bottle of wine from the EU if cost increases are passed on.
23. Milk supplies under pressure
Recent milk price increases are the result of tightening supplies, claims , rather than currency fluctuations.
But the weakness in the pound has boosted Cheddar and butter exports, adding pressure to supplies that were already struggling under milk and fat shortages.
24. Olive oil prices sky-high
British supermarkets have upped the prices of extra virgin olive oil, with Aldi and Lidl raising the prices of their 750ml extra virgin olive oil by nine per cent.
While the price increases are predominantly down to poor crops in Italy and Greece, the weaker sterling has had an effect too, and will result in wider shelf price rises next year.
25. Holiday money means less bang for your buck abroad
The poor sterling-euro exchange rate has resulted in holidaymakers getting less bang for their buck abroad.
With many airports offering terrible rates, some UK travellers are getting less than €1 for every £1.
And the items that are cheaper since Brexit...
According to new research out today, mince pies have fallen in price since Brexit – by an average of seven per cent across the big five supermarkets.
The biggest savings are on standard own-label lines, with six own-label mine pies now retailing at an average of 96p – six per cent less than last year.
Ryanair fares have also fallen, by as much as 10 per cent in recent months. Boss Michael O’Leary predicts prices could drop by a total of 15 per cent by next March.
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