With ever-rising costs for food, gasoline, housing and other necessities squeezing consumers and threatening the economy, inflation in the United States likely set yet another four-decade high in March.
The government's consumer price index being released Tuesday is expected to show that prices shot up 8.4% from 12 months earlier, according to economists surveyed by the data firm FactSet. That would mark the fastest year-over-year inflation since December 1981. And it would surpass the 7.9% 12-month increase in February, which itself set a 40-year high.
The escalation of energy prices has led to higher transportation costs for the shipment of goods and components across the economy, which, in turn, has contributed to higher prices for consumers. If the March price figures come in as expected, they will solidify expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise rates aggressively in the coming months to try to slow borrowing and spending and tame high inflation. The financial markets, in fact, now foresee much steeper rate hikes this year than Fed officials had signaled as recently as last month.
Economists generally express doubt that even the sharp rate hikes that are expected from the Fed will manage to reduce inflation anywhere near the central bank's 2% annual target by the end of this year. Tilley, Wilmington Trust economist, said he expects year-over-year consumer inflation to still be 4.5% by the end of 2020. Before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, he had forecast a much lower 3% rate.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Even with ties, Ukrainian families struggle to reach the United StatesOlena Kopchak, her husband and their 8-year-old daughter, Yana, are among the growing number of Ukrainians who are trying to make it to the United States — and confronting obstacles.
Read more »
14 Charged With Illegally Trafficking Hundreds Of Firearms Into Philadelphia From Southern StatesFederal officials unveiled two indictments charging 14 people with illegally trafficking hundreds of firearms into Philadelphia. It's a so-called black market pipeline from Georgia and South Carolina to the Delaware Valley. JoeHoldenCBS3 reports.
Read more »
FDA Links Raw Oysters to Norovirus Outbreak in 13 StatesSo far, more than 100 people are sick in the U.S. alone.
Read more »
These Are the 10 Best and Worst States for Working From Home, According to WalletHubA new WalletHub report identifies the best states for working from home, based on factors like internet cost, average home size and remote job availability.
Read more »
Putin's war fuels tensions in Baltic states with Russian-speaking populationsThis town of about 55,000 on the border with Russia could be at the edge of a new Iron Curtain created by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It’s a place between two worlds, where Russia and Russian identity meets Estonia and the West.
Read more »
Crypto Industry's Growing Sway in Shaping US States' Laws: NY TimesCrypto executives and lobbyists are working with state legislators across the U.S. to craft favorable laws, The New York Times reported, in the second of a series that shows mainstream media’s increased coverage of the industry. KReyofCoinDesk reports.
Read more »