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The US consumer price index rose 8.5% in March compared to the same period a year earlier.
According to CNBC on the 12th (local time), the U.S. Department of Labor announced on the morning of the morning that the consumer price index (CPI) rose 8.5% in March. That’s slightly higher than the 8.4% expected by US economists, and the highest since the beginning of the Reagan administration.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine was largely due to a surge in energy prices and a sharp rise in food prices. Excluding food and energy, the CPI rose 6.5%, in line with expectations.
This is a level not seen in the United States since the stagflation of the late 1970s and early 1980s. The figure for March was the highest since December 1981, and core inflation was also the highest since August 1982.
Real incomes rose 5.6% from a year earlier due to soaring inflation, but failed to keep up with the cost of living.
During the period, real average hourly earnings in the United States fell 0.8%, seasonally adjusted, according to a separate Bureau of Labor Statistics report.
By Kim Jung-ah, staff reporter kja@hankyung.com
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