THE total value of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Britain has topped 1 trillion pounds (US$1.56 trillion) for the first time, Prime Minister David Cameron’s government said yesterday, hailing “a sharp increase” in net flows last year.

    The data is likely to be seized upon by Cameron’s Conservatives who reject assertions from opponents that his plan to reform Britain’s ties with the European Union ahead of an in-out membership referendum risks hurting foreign investment.

    Cameron first announced the EU plan in 2013.

    The government said the value of accumulated foreign direct investment rose by 90 billion pounds in 2014 to take the total to more than 1 trillion pounds, the highest in Europe and third highest in the world after the United States and China.

    It said Britain’s strong economic performance in 2014 meant the number of foreign investment projects increased 12 percent year on year.

    “The scale of foreign investment is a huge success story,” said Cameron, who is taking a trade delegation with him.

    Meanwhile, the United Kingdom has rebounded from its dip into deflation last month, as prices rose in May for the first time since October thanks to a rises in transport costs, official data published Tuesday showed.

    April saw annual consumer price inflation (CPI) in the United Kingdom fall below zero for the first time since the 1960s, according to the Office for National Statistics, which said its consumer price index measure of inflation fell 0.1 percent in April.

    But May’s figures showed prices clawed back from April’s lows, with consumer prices climbing 0.1 percent in the 12 months to May as airfares rose this year, but fell a year ago.

    The rise in the cost of air travel between April and May varies significantly year on year, with the timing of Easter seen as a likely factor. (SD-Agencies)