Financial Times headline: US inflation resumes rapid rise by accelerating in May
Subheadline: Consumer prices rose 1% during month and 8.6% from a year ago, adding more pressure on Fed to cool the economy
US consumer price growth resumed its rapid rise in May, accelerating 1 per cent during the month as rising inflation in the services sector added urgency to the Federal Reserve’s plans to aggressively tighten monetary policy.
The monthly rise in the consumer price index, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday, was significantly faster than the 0.3 per cent increase recorded in April and above economists’ expectations for a 0.7 per cent uptick.
At that pace, the year-over-year pace intensified to 8.6 per cent, the highest level since December 1981. Economists have previously said headline annual inflation should start to retreat as it starts lapping very elevated levels logged last year, but the recent run-up in prices has so far defied that trend.