Inflation, a rise in prices or decrease in purchasing power, is currently rising in the United States. According to CNN, US consumer price inflation has increased 6.2% in the past year. This is the largest jump in over 30 years. Along with consumer price inflation, prices of food and energy have jumped along with housing. The question is, why is inflation so high right now?
There are three major reasons for the high inflation that is affecting the country. The country is recovering from the pandemic it has endured for the past 18 months; this has caused a huge increase in demand. Also, the pandemic has caused raw material shortages and issues with global supply chains. Another contributing factor is the rise in energy costs. Stimulus boosts from the government could also be influencing inflation.
In a statement, President Joe Biden said "inflation hurts Americans pocketbooks, and reversing this trend is a top priority for me."
It was surprising and concerning to learn how high inflation is now. It was interesting that the pandemic contributed so much to this, showing just how much harm the pandemic did to so many areas of life. I would like to learn more about how we can reverse this trend.