US inflation by 8.6%

by sara from someonefromuniverse

The latest data on consumer prices in the United States showed that annual inflation unexpectedly rose to a 40-year high in May

underscoring concerns about household finances and piling pressure on political leaders who say they're doing everything they can to address the problem

What's happening: The Consumer Price Index rose by 8.6% in the 12 months to May. It had fallen slightly to 8.3% in in April

That signals to investors that the Federal Reserve could continue to aggressively hike interest rates through the end of the year as it tries to get inflation under control

"Upcoming inflation data will be most important for determining the pace of hikes beyond July," Citi economists said in a note to clients earlier this week

The big question for policymakers and Wall Street is whether inflation has peaked

When stripping out volatile food and fuel costs, annual inflation in May rose 6%, slightly lower than in April

"I'm confident that inflation will be meaningfully lower by this time next year and back to something we will feel comfortable with not too long thereafter," Mark Zandi

Pay attention to this number in today's US inflation report