President Biden lauded the April CPI report as a sign of progress in fighting inflation, even as the data suggested the road back to normal could be bumpy.
Inflation has emerged as one of the most stubborn political problems for President Biden in his re-election campaign, and price growth hit a grim new milestone this week in a blow to the White House.
The consumer price index, a broad measure of the price of everyday goods including gasoline, groceries and rent, rose 3.4% in April, down slightly from March. But the report – released last week – also showed that prices are up more than 19.4% since Biden took office in 2021.
In a statement released after the data came out, Biden noted that "inflation has fallen more than 60% from its peak, and core inflation fell to its lowest level in three years." But he acknowledged that "prices are still too high" and reiterated that fighting inflation is his "top economic priority."
INFLATION INCREASES 3.4% IN APRIL AS PRICES REMAIN ELEVATED
While inflation has fallen considerably from a peak of 9.1% notched during June 2022, it remains well above the Federal Reserve's 2% goal. On top of that, progress in reducing overall costs for Americans has mostly stalled.
High inflation has created severe financial pressures for most U.S. households, which are forced to pay more for everyday necessities like food and rent. Grocery prices are up more than 21% from the start of 2021, while shelter costs are up 18.37%, according to FOX Business calculations. Energy prices, meanwhile, are up 38.4.%.
WHY ARE GROCERIES STILL SO EXPENSIVE?
Price hikes are particularly devastating for lower-income Americans because they tend to spend more of their already-stretched paycheck on necessities and therefore have less flexibility to save money.
The typical U.S. household needed to pay $227 more a month in March to purchase the same goods and services it did one year ago because of still-high inflation. Americans are paying on average $784 more each month compared with the same time two years ago and $1,069 more compared with three years ago.
The latest findings come amid growing pessimism among U.S. households about their financial situation under Biden.
A recent poll published by Gallup found that Americans are less optimistic about the state of the U.S. economy than they have been in recent months, and that just 38% of voters have confidence in Biden to recommend or do the right thing for the economy. By comparison, in 2020, about 47% of respondents said they trusted former President Donald Trump to do the right thing for the economy.
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"Biden's subpar rating could have significant electoral implications as not only does he have the lowest economic rating of any president seeking reelection since Gallup began tracking this in 2001, but independents trust his opponent more than him," Gallup said.
