Posted on Apr 13, 2021
Consumer Prices Jumped. Should You Worry? That's Sparking A Heated Debate
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Prices for some of your favorite things are going up. The big question is how long the price hikes will last.
Consumer prices rose 0.6% in March, according to the Labor Department — the sharpest increase in nearly nine years. Higher gasoline prices account for nearly half the increase, but prices for hotel rooms, baseball tickets and haircuts were also higher.
Over the past 12 months, the department's consumer price index has risen 2.6%. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, inflation was 0.3% in March and 1.6% over the past year.
The March price increase is somewhat exaggerated by the point of comparison. Prices fell a year ago when the pandemic first took hold in the United States, dropping 0.4% in March 2020 and another 0.8% in April.
But fundamentally, the jump in prices is coming at a time when businesses are still struggling to keep pace with unexpectedly strong demand.
Consumer prices rose 0.6% in March, according to the Labor Department — the sharpest increase in nearly nine years. Higher gasoline prices account for nearly half the increase, but prices for hotel rooms, baseball tickets and haircuts were also higher.
Over the past 12 months, the department's consumer price index has risen 2.6%. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, inflation was 0.3% in March and 1.6% over the past year.
The March price increase is somewhat exaggerated by the point of comparison. Prices fell a year ago when the pandemic first took hold in the United States, dropping 0.4% in March 2020 and another 0.8% in April.
But fundamentally, the jump in prices is coming at a time when businesses are still struggling to keep pace with unexpectedly strong demand.
Consumer Prices Jumped. Should You Worry? That's Sparking A Heated Debate
Posted from npr.org
Money
Economy
Economics
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 2
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