Americans paid sharply higher prices for goods and services in September, the government said Tuesday, mainly because of the elevated cost of gas.
The consumer price index jumped 0.6 percent in September for the second month in a row, the Labor Department said Tuesday. That’s the biggest back-to-back increase in more than four years.
Economists surveyed by MarketWatch forecast CPI to rise by 0.5 percent. Higher prices in the past two months have hit Americans in the pocketbooks. Inflation-adjusted wages dropped 0.3 percent in September and 0.6 percent in August, wiping out any improvement in workers’ earnings in the past year. Real wages have fallen 0.2 percent in the past 12 months. Meanwhile, people who collect Social Security can expect a 1.7 percent increase in their monthly payments on Jan. 1, based on inflation figures.
News Tribune news services
JOIN THE DISCUSSION | Register here
We welcome comments. Please keep them civil, short and to the point. ALL CAPS, spam, obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. Thanks for taking part — and abiding by these simple rules. A thorough explanation of rules of conduct can be found in our Terms of Service. If you have any questions, including why your comment may not be showing immediately after you submit it, be sure to visit the commenting FAQ.