United Kingdom inflation unexpectedly accelerated in February to its second-fastest pace in a decade.

This strengthens the case for a further interest-rate increase from the Bank of England.

Consumer prices rose 2.8 percent from a year earlier, the London-based Office for National Statistics said yesterday.

Economists expected 2.7 percent, the median of 39 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey showed.

Retail price inflation, which includes mortgage costs, accelerated to the fastest pace since 1991.

The pound rose and investors added to bets on another increase in borrowing costs after higher air fares and food bills drove gains in consumer prices last month.

The report may prompt concern among policy makers that inflation, which reached a decade high of three percent in December, will stay above the Bank of England's two percent target for longer than they previously forecast.

"It's another sign that inflation pressures are being persistent," said James Knightley, an economist at ING Financial Markets in London.

"It increases the possibility of another rate rise from the Bank of England. I think what we'll see is a 25 basis-point increase in April."

The pound climbed the most in nine weeks and rose as high as US$1.9564 before the report.

The implied rate on the June contract rose six basis points to 5.72 percent in London yesterday. The contract settles to the three-month London interbank offered rate for the pound, which has averaged about 15 basis points more than the central bank benchmark for a decade.

The bank forecast on February 14 that inflation will slow below its target in the fourth quarter and ease to an average of 1.9 percent in the period assuming its key rate climbs to 5.5 percent.

Inflation has exceeded the Bank's of England's goal for 10 consecutive months.