A spike in gas, food and rent prices catapulted U.S. inflation to a record four-decade high in June, further provoking households and likely sealing the case for another steep interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve, with higher borrowing costs to follow, according to the Associated Press. A 9.1 percent increase in consumer prices was reported Wednesday, the biggest yearly increase since 1981, and an increase from May’s 8.6 percent.
The price rise from May to June was 1.3 percent, after prices jumped 1 percent in April. Inflation has severe impacts on the living standards of the average American, with the costs of necessities, in particular, increasing much more rapidly than average incomes as a result of the persistent price acceleration.