The Consumer Price Index (CPI), a key measure of inflation, ticked up 0.1 percent in August, maintaining its historic year-over-year pace. Over the last 12 months, the index has increased 8.3 percent, the fastest rise in the index since the early 1980s.
Energy prices easily continue to lead the index, rising 23.8 percent year-over-year. Fuel oil alone rose 68.8 percent year-over-year, with gasoline up 25.6 percent, piped gas service up 33 percent, and propane up 18.8 percent.
Prices for a number of other items were sharply up year-over-year, including eggs up 39.8 percent, plane tickets up 33.4 percent, butter up 24.6 percent, health insurance up 24.3 percent, flour up 23.3 percent, public transportation up 21.1 percent, coffee up 18.7 percent, soups up 18.5 percent, cereal up 17.6 percent, salads up 17.3 percent, milk up 17 percent, and bread up 16.2 percent.
These items all outpaced chicken, which was up 16.6 percent over the last year. That rise, which is down one percent from last month, is about in line with electricity, living room furniture, potatoes, ice cream, salt, and sugar.
The Consumer Price Index can be found here.
Meanwhile, the Producer Price Index (PPI), which reflects what suppliers are charging businesses and other customers and is generally considered the core metric of input price changes, is up 8.7 percent year-over-year. That outpaces the prices consumers are seeing by 0.4 percent, reflecting a faster increase in the prices manufacturers are paying to make goods than consumers are paying to receive final goods.
The Producer Price Index can be found here.
