The CPI rose 0.9% since September, the biggest advance in four months. The analysts estimate was 5.9% per year and 0.6% per month
Prices paid by American consumers accelerated in October from a year earlier by the most since 1990, exceeding forecasts and contributing to evidence of inflationary pressures building as companies find more success in passing on higher costs.
The consumer price index increased 6.2% from October 2020, according to Labor Department data released Wednesday. The CPI rose 0.9% since September, the biggest advance in four months.
The median estimate from a Bloomberg survey of economists indicated a 5.9% increase from the previous year in the headline CPI and a 0.6% increase from the previous month.
Against a backdrop of strong demand, companies have steadily increased the prices of consumer goods and services, while supply chain bottlenecks and a shortage of skilled workers drive up costs. Many economists, including some at the Federal Reserve, expect those price pressures to persist into the next year, keeping inflation high.
A report on Tuesday showed that prices paid to US producers also accelerated last month, in large part due to higher costs of goods and concerns about lingering price pressures around the world. In China, inflation at the factory level last month rose the most in 26 years, while consumer prices in Brazil accelerated more than expected.
