Consumer prices rise more than expected, pushed by 9.1% jump in gasoline [View all]
Source: CNBC
Consumer prices shot higher in March, given a boost by a strong economic recovery and year-over-year comparisons to a time when the Covid-19 pandemic was about to throttle the U.S. economy, the Labor Department reported Tuesday.
The consumer price index rose 0.6% from the previous month but 2.6% from the same period a year ago. The year-over-year gain is the highest since August 2018 and was well above the 1.7% recorded in February.
The index was projected to rise 0.5% on a monthly basis and 2.5% from March 2020, according to Dow Jones estimates.
The report is the clearest indication so far that the signs of mounting inflation evident in business surveys and producer prices are feeding through to stronger consumer prices, wrote Michael Pearce, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics. For all the focus on supply disruptions pushing goods prices higher, the strongest upward pressure on prices is coming from the services sector.
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/13/us-consumer-price-index-march-2021.html
Inflation is here for now.
What we'll see over the next few months will be interesting!