Inflation climbs again as prices remain near multi-decade high

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Florida Rep. Kat Cammack and former Trump economic adviser Steve Moore discuss inflation and Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s departure from the Democratic Party on ‘The Evening Edit.’

Inflation moderated more than expected in November, but consumer prices remained near a multi-decade high, continuing to squeeze millions of U.S. households and small businesses.

The Labor Department said Tuesday that the consumer price index, a broad measure of the price for everyday goods including gasoline, groceries and rents, rose 0.1% in November from the previous month. Prices climbed 7.1% on an annual basis. 

Those figures were both lower than the 7.3% headline figure and 0.3% monthly increase forecast by Refinitiv economists,  a potentially reassuring sign for the Federal Reserve as it tries to tame runaway inflation with a series of aggressive interest rate hikes. It marked the slowest annual inflation rate since December 2021.

In another sign that suggests underlying inflationary pressures in the economy are starting to slow, core prices – which strip out the more volatile measurements of food and energy – climbed 0.2% in November from the previous month, down from 0.3% in October. From the same time last year, core prices jumped 6%.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.