British annual inflation surprisingly dipped in October from a two-year high, official data showed Tuesday, despite a Brexit-triggered slump in the pound lifting imported raw material costs for UK firms.

The 12-month inflation rate eased to 0.9 percent compared with 1.0 percent in September, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement.

Analysts' consensus forecast had been for a slight increase to 1.1 percent, according to a Bloomberg poll.