The economic toll of the Iran war continued to mount for U.S. consumers in May as inflation moved sharply higher amid a deepening global energy crisis.
The consumer price index (CPI) increased 0.5% across the all-items index on a seasonally adjusted basis last month, compared to 0.6% growth in April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Wednesday. The monthly rise matched forecasts of economists polled by Reuters.
On an annual basis, the CPI grew 4.2% compared to 3.8% in April, matching consensus estimates of economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal.
After a relative breather in April, energy prices surged again in May, accounting for more than 60% of the monthly increase. That included a 7% jump in the gasoline index — ...