The U.S. annual inflation rate surged to 8.5 percent in March, topping the market estimate of 8.4 percent, the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data show. That’s the biggest spike since December 1981. Consumer prices rose faster in March, owing primarily to higher energy and food costs.
The core inflation rate, which excludes the volatile food and energy sectors, increased 6.5 percent year-over-year last month.
On a month-over-month basis, the consumer price index (CPI) rose 1.2 percent, while the core CPI edged up 0.3 percent.
All the indexes increased notably in March, with the inflation reading being broad-based and across the board.
Food climbed 8.8 percent, energy surged 32 percent, used cars and trucks soared 35.3 percent, and new vehicles jumped 12.5 percent. Apparel advanced 6.8 percent, while shelter rose 5 percent. Transportation services spiked 7.7 percent and medical care services picked up 2.9 percent.
Has Inflation Peaked?
Before the release, the White House warned the American people that they needed to brace for an “extraordinary elevated” report, blaming it on “Putin’s price hike.” Still, the administration has insisted that prices could start to come down toward the end of the year.
With consumer and producer prices climbing to unseen levels in decades, some wonder if the March sky-high headline reading is really the peak of today’s inflationary environment.
“I believe that inflation should start paring off in Q3 of 2022 as some of the supply chain disruption abates. However, it will stay at a worryingly high level,” Carlos Legaspy, the owner and CEO of Insight Securities, told The Epoch Times.
But high inflation will persist amid the military conflict in Eastern Europe, the global supply chain crisis, and the broad array of shortages throughout the economy.
“Inflation, yes, will persist even after Fed’s tightening cycle starts,” Sankar Sharma, a market technician and investment expert, told The Epoch Times, adding that food inflation and labor shortages could contribute to rising inflation.
By Andrew Moran
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