Today’s report shows inflation up in February, demonstrating the biggest jump we’ve seen in decades.
The latest numbers from the commerce department show prices up 6.4 percent year-over-year in February, compared to 6 percent in January.
It was the biggest increase in cost for food, gas and other necessities since January 1982.
“It continues to run hot, right?" said Dean Smith, chief strategist at FolioBeyond. "I mean,the inflation number was consistent with expectations, but expectations are pretty high.”
Amid soaring prices, incomes rose 0.5 percent, after a smaller 0.1 percent increase the month prior. That’s likely due to employers offering more competitive wages. But to make up for that cost, some businesses are making customers pay more, therefore adding to inflationary pressure.
Meanwhile, determining the economic impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – which occurred at the tail end of February – might not be evident until the next couple reports.
“The Ukraine situation is not going to be resolved militarily very quickly," Smith said."And then getting them back to full production of agricultural products and energy sources coming both from Russia and Ukraine is going to take years.”
Despite that added challenge – the federal reserve is expected to continue raising interest rates throughout the year to cool the economy and ease rising costs.
