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Consumer prices jump, especially for cars, flights and other ways to get away

May 12, 2021
Inflation data shows that consumer prices went up 4.2% year over year — the most since 2008.
Car-rental prices have leaped, registering a 16% monthly increase in April. Consumer prices overall rose 4.2% year over year, outpacing forecasts.
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Consumer prices jump 0.8% in April

May 12, 2021
The rise in inflation over the past year is at its fastest rate in more than a decade.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Lumber isn't the only thing that's getting more expensive for contractors

Apr 22, 2021
Everything that goes into a building project, from diesel fuel to plastics to gypsum for drywall, is getting more expensive.
Sharply rising prices for all kinds of raw materials are hurting residential and commercial builders alike.
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Consumer prices jump 0.6% in March, biggest gain since 2012

Apr 13, 2021
The gains are largely expected to be a temporary blip rather than a reawakening of dormant inflation.
Gasoline price spikes accounted for about half of the monthly increase in consumer prices, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says.
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Prices for U.S. consumers are up where it matters most

For things like groceries and gasoline, prices are actually up.
Inflation isn't entirely dead. Where it matters most, in the cost of food and the cost of energy, prices are going up.
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Does measuring inflation matter during a pandemic?

May 12, 2020
How prices of many basic goods and services change usually tells us a lot about where the economy is headed.
A gas station in Los Angeles in March. CPI data shows gas prices fell more than 20% last month.
Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images

Why is inflation still so low?

With the lowest unemployment rate in 50 years, wages — and prices — should be rising faster than they are.
One reason inflation is so low might be globalization.
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For public good, not for profit.

From fresh food to a new backyard fence, it's spending season

Jun 12, 2019
A look at consumer prices as our listeners get ready for summer.
Kelsey Sprowell of Iowa City, Iowa, chose to build this fence with her family to save money.
Courtesy of Kelsey Sprowell

Measuring inflation isn't easy

Apr 10, 2019
Month-to-month price fluctuations make it difficult for the Bureau of Labor Statistics to measure inflation accurately.
Shoppers line up to check out at a Target store in 2008 in Miami.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

A strong economy with low inflation? Inequality may be to blame.

Mar 12, 2019
New inflation numbers out today showed … very little of it. The consumer price index ticked up 0.2 percent in February. It was the first rise in four months. And year over year, the measure of how expensive it is to buy a fixed basket of goods is up just 1.5 percent. And that’s weird, […]
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