(NEXSTAR) – Inflation is far from its peak of 9.1% we saw two years ago, but prices are still creeping up. Consumer prices are up 2.6% from a year ago, the Labor Department announced Wednesday.
While certain spending categories are down – fuel oil for example is 20% cheaper than it was last fall – inflation is still being driven up by growing rent prices, expensive used cars, and pricy air travel.
A big driver of inflation over the past month is rising rent, which is up 5% year-over-year according to the latest federal data. Housing represents the biggest part of many families’ budgets, and the Census says it’s a growing problem. An annual survey of U.S. households found that half of renter households qualify as “rent burdened,” meaning they spend more than 30% of their pre-tax income on rent.
Food prices overall are also up about 2% from last year, but certain grocery items have spiked by much more. Some beef cuts are 6% more expensive, beans are up 5% and frozen juice is up 14%. Condiment prices have jumped nearly 23%.
The biggest year-over-year price change by far is with eggs, whose prices have been highly volatile over the last few years. They fell 6.4% just last month, but they’re up more than 30% from a year earlier.
Used car prices jumped 2.7% just from September to October, after having mostly declined for months before that. But that spike may prove to be an anomaly. Auto dealers have mostly rebuilt their inventories after they were depleted during COVID, and in some cases, dealers have had to offer incentives again to entice buyers. Compared with a year ago, average used car prices are still down 3.4%.
Once you buy a car, you’ll need to insure it – and that’s gotten a lot more expensive. Motor vehicle insurance plans are 14% pricier than this time last year.
Dropping fuel prices aren’t making air travel any cheaper. The cost of airfare grew more than 6% between September and October, just as people look ahead to the peak holiday travel season.
Even as inflation slows, overall prices are still about 20% higher than they were three years ago.
The price spike soured Americans on the economy and on the Biden-Harris administration’s economic stewardship and contributed to Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss in last week’s presidential election.
Yet Donald Trump’s victory has raised uncertainty about where inflation might be headed and how the Fed would react if it reaccelerated. Trump has vowed to reduce inflation, mostly by ramping up oil and gas drilling. But mainstream economists have warned that some of his proposals, notably his plan to substantially increase tariffs on imports and pursue mass deportations of migrants, would worsen inflation if fully implemented.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
