UK inflation climbed to the highest level in 10 months in January, boosted by the cost of airfares, motor fuel, food and the imposition of value-added tax on private school fees.

Consumer prices increased 3 percent from a year earlier, accelerating from a 2.5 percent pace in December, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday. It was above the 2.8 percent forecast by economists and the Bank of England.

The figures are likely to entrench caution at the BOE over cutting interest rates to support a moribund economy. While Governor Andrew Bailey has played down the threat from an expected surge in inflation this year, officials say they can’t rule out “second-round effects” keeping underlying pressures higher for longer. The BOE expects inflation to peak at 3.7 percent in the third quarter on the back of energy costs.

Higher inflation makes a March interest rate cut by the Bank of England “improbable,” said Suren Thiru, economics director at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. “These figures confirm a disheartening rebound in inflation as rising air fares and the introduction of VAT on private school fees contributed to notably widen the gap with the Bank’s 2 percent target.”