Inflation in the US persists and accelerates more than expected in September

Inflation was persistent in September in the United States, despite the already strong measures taken to curb it, complicating the task of President Joe Biden who, a month before the mid-term elections, recently admitted the possibility of a recession.

Prices rose 8.2% in September year-on-year, according to the CPI index, which serves as a reference, published this Thursday by the Department of Labor. This represents a very slight slowdown since last month the price increase in one year had been 8.3 percent.

But it is above all the rise in prices in just one month that shows that inflation is tenacious: the increase in prices accelerated again, rising 0.4% between August and September, compared to 0.1% between July and August. And that’s more than the 0.3% increase that analysts were expecting.

Rises in rental prices for real estate, food and medical care “were the main factors that contributed to the monthly increase,” the Department of Labor detailed in its statement.

Gasoline prices, however, fell 4.9%, thus continuing their decline after rising due to the war in Ukraine.

So-called core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, was flat in a month, at 0.6%, but accelerated in a year, to 6.6%.

It’s even a “new 40-year high,” says Rubeela Farooqi, chief economist at consultancy HFE. “Consumer prices surprised to the upside in September,” she commented.

However, inflation has slowed since peaking in June, when prices soared 9.1% year-on-year, the biggest increase since December 1981.