A worrisome bout of inflation struck the economy in April, with U.S. consumer prices for goods and services surging 0.8%, the largest monthly jump in more than a decade, and the year-over-year increase reaching its fastest rate since 2008.
The acceleration in prices, which has been building for months, has unsettled financial markets and raised concerns that it could weaken the economic recovery from the pandemic recession.
Wednesday's report from the Labor Department showed sharply higher prices for everything from food and clothes to housing. A 10% surge in the prices of used cars and trucks — a record jump — accounted for roughly one-third of last month's increases. Prices for vehicles, both used and new, have been soaring as a result of a computer chip shortage that has slowed auto production and reduced dealer supplies.
Over the past 12 months, consumer prices have jumped 4.2% — the fastest rise since a 4.9% gain in the 12 months that ended in September 2008. Excluding volatile food and energy, core inflation rose 0.9% in April and 3% over the past 12 months.
After years of dormant inflation, with the Federal Reserve struggling to increase it, worries about rising prices have shot to the top of economic concerns. Shortages of goods and parts related to disrupted supply chains have been a key factor.
The Fed, led by Chair Jerome Powell, has repeatedly expressed its belief that inflation will prove temporary as supply bottlenecks are unclogged and parts and goods flow normally again. But some economists have expressed concern that as the economic recovery accelerates, fueled by rising demand from consumers spending freely again, so will inflation.
“It looks like inflation pressures are not only building but are likely to be here at least through the rest of the year,” said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors. “With growth robust, firms have a measure of pricing power tat they haven't had in decades, and they appear to be using it.”
Investors, too, have grown increasingly jittery. On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank more than 470 points — 1.4% — its worst day since Feb. 26.
Wednesday's inflation report showed that food prices rose 0.4%, the biggest such increase since a 0.5% rise last June. Energy costs, though, edged down 0.1%, with gasoline pump prices falling 1.4%, the biggest drop since May 2020.
Last month, Powell suggested at a news conference that Fed officials expect inflation to move above its 2% annual target over the next few months. The Fed has said it will allow prices to rise slightly above 2% for a period of time to make up for the past decade's shortfalls in inflation.
Powell has said that as long as the increase in inflation doesn't appear to be hurting consumer and business expectations about price increases, the central bank would be willing to let prices rise without acting to raise interest rates. That view has been supported by comments from other Fed officials including Lael Brainard, a board member who warned Tuesday against a premature Fed tightening that could harm the economy.
Stocks closed near session lows Wednesday as investors showed concerns about rising oil prices, supply shortages, and renewed risk of inflation. While investors began the week on a confident note, today's jump in oil prices has them once again worried that inflation will not go away any time soon. John Traynor, Chief Investment Officer at People's United Advisors, joins Closing Bell to discuss today's market close, the Federal Reserve's comments and actions taken to combat inflation, and more.
John Logan, Director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University, joined Cheddar News to discuss the growing unionization push by employees at Starbucks and Amazon, and the wider implications of employee organization at these big companies.
Adidas is now the first major sports brand to create a program for paying college athletes. The new "name, image and likeness" network will allow more than 50,000 students across NCAA Division 1 schools to become paid spokespeople for the brand. Thilo Kunkel, Associate Professor and Director of Sport Industry Research Center at Temple University, tells us why this new program is only the beginning of an exciting time for student athletes.
The U.S. is bracing for a potential cyberattack as both the FBI and President Biden warn that Russia is 'exploring' a hack. This comes amid a recent rise in hacks on U.S. companies including Microsoft, Okta, and Nestle. Chris Pierson, founder & CEO, BlackCloak joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
The co-owner and managing partner at Key Advisors Group Eddie Ghabour joined Cheddar News to break down the many factors impacting the market today, including the war in Ukraine, Fed rate hikes, inflation, and job numbers. Ghabour explained that he sees a bear market bounce currently leading to a downturn as the Federal Reserve is forced to be hawkish — even hinting at a recession. "I can't stress enough, you have a Fed that's telling us they're going to raise rates by 50 basis points in May during this type of environment," he said. "That's gonna be the knockout punch for this market and this economy in the short term and worst case for the consumer, unfortunately, in our opinion."
Michele Schneider, Partner and Director of Trading Research & Education at MarketGauge, talks about the challenges the Fed has in avoiding rising inflation and how the commodity shock is impacting long-term growth.
Craig Erlam, Senior Market Analyst at OANDA, breaks down the geopolitical risks impacting U.S. investors and how one can position their portfolio in a down-trending market.
Catching you up on what you need to know Mar 24, 2022, with NATO meeting updates, Ukraine retaking suburbs around Kyiv, the spread of omicron subvariant BA.2 in China, Google Pay launching a third-party billing option, and a 16-year-old is suspected of being the Lapsus$ mastermind behind hacks of Microsoft and others.
With ongoing supply chain issues and war in Ukraine, inflation is likely here to stay. This is the first time many younger people will experience consistent inflation as working adults, so this video breaks it down using candy (for fun!).
