A 30-minute price-list check before the 5 November rate decision

If your price list has not moved since spring, the cost of standing still has just gone up. The numbers are on the table, and a 30-minute check can show which prices to look at first.

The problem: costs are moving, price lists are not

Most owners revisit prices once a year, or when a customer complains, while costs change every month. The gap never shows up as one bad invoice. It shows up as a margin a little thinner each quarter, and by the time the accounts make it obvious, months of orders are already booked at the old prices.

The evidence: input costs are rising faster than selling prices

The Office for National Statistics reported on 21 October that producer input prices rose by 8.3% in the year to September 2026, up from a revised 6.7% in August. Factory gate (output) prices rose by 4.6%, the largest annual rise since April 2023. The ONS attributes most of the movement to oil-related products. Services producer prices rose by 4.5% in the year to the third quarter.

Read the two side by side. If your input costs have followed the 8.3% and your prices the 4.6%, the difference comes out of your margin. Your mix will differ from the national average, so the check below uses your numbers.

Consumer prices are rising too: CPI was 3.5% in the 12 months to September, up from 3.1% in August, according to the same ONS release. The Bank of England's Decision Maker Panel survey for September found firms reporting own-price growth of 3.7% over the past year and expecting the same over the next. The Monetary Policy Committee held Bank Rate at 3.75% in September, by a 6–3 vote, with three members preferring an increase to 4%. Its next decision is published on 5 November 2026. Better to know your price position before that date than after it.

The solution: a 30-minute price-list check

You do not need a pricing project. You need one list and one calculation.

1. Pull your top 10 products by revenue. These carry most of your margin risk, and ten is a number you can finish in half an hour.
2. Mark the date each price last changed. Anything unchanged for more than six months goes to the top of the list.
3. Compare cost movement with price movement. For each product, take the current unit cost and the cost when the price was last set. If cost has risen faster than price, margin has fallen. Do it in percentage points so products are comparable.
4. Set a floor. Choose the lowest gross margin you will accept on a product, for example 30% (an illustrative figure; use your own). Any product below it needs action this month.
5. Change the least sensitive prices first. Start with specialist items and customers who buy on service and reliability. Leave your most price-compared lines until last, and give contract customers written notice that matches your terms.

A short note to customers that names the reason for the change, and gives them a date, usually lands better than a quiet increase they find on an invoice.

Why this works

Margin is the gap between price and cost, so it only holds if both are reviewed together, on a regular rhythm. The ONS series show how far the two can drift apart in a single year, and the Bank of England's survey shows firms adjusting prices as costs change. A short, fixed review turns pricing from an occasional argument into a routine.

What to check this month

• Which of your top 10 products have not had a price change in over six months?
• By how much has the unit cost of each risen since its price was set?
• Which products are now below your minimum margin?
• Which customer contracts allow a price change, and what notice do they require?
• What would a 5% rise in input costs do to your gross margin if prices stayed the same?

If you would rather have your margin by product and customer calculated for you, there is a Business Health Check.