(My new American Thinker post)
The Biden re-election campaign got some bad news about the "I" word. This is the bad news:
Inflation rose again in April despite an aggressive interest-rate hike campaign by the Federal Reserve, indicating that strong underlying price pressures are still bubbling beneath the surface of the economy -- and continuing to burden millions of Americans.
The Labor Department said Wednesday that the consumer price index, a broad measure of the price for everyday goods including gasoline, groceries and rents, rose 0.4% in April from the previous month, much faster than the 0.1% increase recorded in March.
Prices climbed 4.9% on an annual basis, slightly below the 5% increase forecast by Refinitiv economists.
Although inflation has cooled from a peak of 9.1%, it remains about more than double the pre-pandemic average and well above the Fed's 2% target rate.
Bad numbers for the economists. High gasoline and food prices for the American family.
What happens now? I would assume that we will hear from the Biden administration that inflation is actually down. They will remind us that gasoline will now cost $ 3.25 rather than $ 3.50. True but you are still leaving more money at the gas pump than a couple of years ago. Add to this the price of eggs and Americans are not happy.
The Fed will likely increase interest rates. I am not a finance expert but that probably means that the cost of money will go up, whether you are buying a home, one of those brand new cars, or refinancing a loan.
Inflation is here and he is usually the last guest to leave the party.
P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.