Inflation jumped to 2.7% in April, its highest level since September 2013, after the late timing of Easter this year led to a rise in air fares last month.
Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed a big jump from March's 2.3%, with inflation outpacing wage growth, which stood at 2.3% in the three months to February, the latest available figures. The retail prices index, which includes the impact of mortgage costs, rose to 3.5%, up from 3.1% in March.
The ONS said rising air fares were the biggest contributors to the year-on-year rise in the consumer prices index, but cautioned that this balanced out a dampening effect from air fares the previous month due to this year's late Easter.
'The upward effect for transport came mainly from air fares, with a rise of 18.6% reflecting the usual pattern of increasing prices around Easter,' it said.
Despite the impact of the late Easter on April's reading, economists believe inflation could rise further. 'It could edge back in May, but it is highly unlikely to have peaked yet,' said Howard Archer, chief European and UK economist at IHS Markit.
'We believe inflation is likely to get up to 3% later this year and then hover around this level for a while, although we have trimmed the expected peak in inflation from 3.3% due to a recent firming in sterling and some softening in oil prices.'
Despite the prospect of inflation rising further away from the Bank of England's 2% target, economists have dismissed the chances of an imminent interest rate rise, pointing to the squeeze on household incomes.
'Crucially, tomorrow's jobs report is likely to confirm that prices are rising faster than wages,' said James Smith, economist at ING.
'For that reason, we don't fully buy into the Bank of England's latest signal that policy "could need to be tightened by a somewhat greater extent" than the path implied by markets,' he added.
'Even if the consumer slowdown ends up being less pronounced, the effect of Brexit uncertainty is likely to weigh on investment and hiring over the next few years.'