A top economist says inflation will ease this year as price rises in the global energy market stabilise.
The rate of price growth reached 5.7% in December -- the highest inflation rate measured by the CSO in 21 years.
Professor Moore McDowell says that should level off - but prices look set to stay high:
"You will see that knock on effects of energy prices in other in other areas. I mean, if you're making your potato crisps, you're using electricity to do so. And that's going to feed through into the price of crisps, I should say. So inflation will fall. I don't doubt that. During the year. But it doesn't mean the prices fall. It means the prices won't be increasing as fast."
