Inflation has hit a new 40-year high of 8.6 percent, about 0.3 percent higher than Wall Street's projections as American families struggle under the still-rising cost of things like food, rent, and gas.
According to the latest Consumer Price Index report published by the U.S. Labor Department Friday morning, the CPI rose another seasonally-adjusted 1 percent in May, on top of the 0.3 percent increase from April. All in all, the CPI has skyrocketed 8.6 percent in the past 12 months alone, the steepest increase since 1981.
The Labor Department reported that increases in the price of housing, gas, and food were the primary drivers of the overall record inflation rate, explaining:
The increase was broad-based, with the indexes for shelter, gasoline, and food being the largest contributors. After declining in April, the energy index rose 3.9 percent over the month with the gasoline index rising 4.1 percent and the other major component indexes also increasing. The food index rose 1.2 percent in May as the food at home index increased 1.4 percent.
Food prices - including dining and groceries - are up more than 10 percent over this time last year, according to the report. The Labor Department added that "The food at home index rose 11.9 percent over the last 12 months, the largest 12-month increase since the period ending April 1979." The price of meat, poultry, fish and eggs alone have risen 14.2 percent since May of 2021.
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The cost of energy, which includes gas and electricity, has risen 34.6 percent. But gasoline isn't the only factor - the cost of natural gas is up more than 30 percent over 2021.
Housing is up 5.5 percent, while the cost of a used car has risen 16.1 percent.
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