Economics
U.S. Inflation Shows More Staying Power After Hitting 7% in 2021
- CPI will remain close to 7% for a few months, Wells Fargo says
- Persistently high prices ramp up pressure on Fed, Biden to act
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U.S. consumer prices are likely to extend their eye-popping gains after soaring last year by the most in nearly four decades, further burdening Americans and ramping up pressure on policy makers to act.
The consumer price index climbed 7% in 2021, the largest 12-month gain since June 1982, according to Labor Department data released Wednesday. The widely followed inflation gauge rose a faster-than-expected 0.5% over the month. Investors took a relatively sanguine view of the data, which were broadly in line with expectations.