Surging inflation has eased in recent months, but more evidence is needed to show that price increases are coming down in the long term, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday. (Photo by Yuki IWAMURA / AFP) (Photo by YUKI IWAMURA/AFP via Getty Images)
Prices rose half a percent in January, according to the latest consumer price index. That is up from a 0.1 percent decline in December, and five times the 0.1 percent increase in November.
The monthly uptick was in line with expectation, though the year-over-year rate came in higher than expected 6.4 percent, a marginal drop from a 6.5 percent rate in December.
Shelter (i.e. housing) contributed the largest share to the monthly increase, rising 0.7 percent.
Energy costs were also up across the board. The price of piped gas shot up 6.7 percent, while energy overall was up 2 percent after two straight months of declines.
Food prices, meanwhile, were up 0.5 percent. That is up from 0.4 percent in December, but still low relative to the last six months.
Used car prices also continued their steady decline, dropping 1.7 percent month-over-month and 11.6 percent year-over-year.
Despite the month-over-month drop, the annual rate has slowed for seven straight months.
Melissa Brown, managing director of applied research with Qontigo, joined Cheddar News to discuss a new start to the trading week as the market edged lower in a mixed-performance day. Investors also await the meeting between President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to look to resolve its debt ceiling debate.
Bobbi Rebell, chief financial officer of Financial Wellness Strategies and author of Launching Financial Grownups: Live Your Richest Life by Helping Your (Almost) Adult Kids Become Everyday Money Smart, gives the top four reasons people struggle financially.
Warren Buffett criticized how regulators and lawmakers have handled recent bank failures and noted that the ongoing debt ceiling showdown will sow even more chaos.
Wall Street drifted to a mixed close ahead of a week full of reports on some of the market’s biggest worries, including how stubbornly high inflation remains across the economy.
