US CPI

Inflation data shows a modest deceleration, but prices are still climbing at a brisk pace, suggesting that underlying inflation pressures remain strong.

This study suggests, however, that high-frequency spending categories like food tend to motivate consumer psychology more than changes in the cost of rent, for example, which most people encounter only once a year. Policymakers have been struggling to avoid a “wage-price spiral,” in which price and wage increases become self-reinforcing and escalate out of control. “What stands out in April 2022 is the above-average increases in food prices,” the office said in a statement. Consumer prices in Germany, Europe’s largest economy, rose at an annual rate of 7.8 percent in April, the Federal Statistics Office said Wednesday, citing preliminary figures that are adjusted to make them comparable with inflation data from other E.U. countries. Agricultural prices started to skyrocket in the second half of last year, meaning year-over-year price increases will start to look less steep since they are measured from a higher starting point. The interest rate resets every six months and is linked to the rate of inflation. But in the process, the Fed has disrupted financial markets and contributed to big price reductions for stocks and bonds. White House officials in recent weeks have repeatedly referred to “ Putin’s price hike,” a reference to the role that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has played in driving up oil and gas prices. On Tuesday, Mr. Biden said in a speech at the White House that inflation was his “top domestic priority” and that his administration was taking whatever steps it could to try to reduce costs. But 67 percent of respondents in the survey — including 42 percent of Republicans — said they approved of the law, the same level of support as when it passed last year. The pickup in housing costs is an especially big deal, because they make up about a third of the overall inflation index. The reality that annual inflation has possibly peaked will give the White House and Fed a positive talking point and a dose of comfort.