U.S. consumer prices in June accelerated at the fastest annual pace since November 1981 — rising 9.1% year-over-year, up from May’s 40-year high of 8.6%.
Soaring food prices contributed significantly to the surge with the category seeing increases of 1% over the month and 10.4% annually, the biggest 12-month increase since the period ending February 1981.
Grocery prices rose 1% last month and 12.2% on a year-over-year basis with the prices of cereal, bread, and chicken seeing increases of 2.5%, 1.6% and 1.5%, respectively, compared to the month of May.
On an annual basis, the prices of those items were up a whopping 14.2%, 10.8% and 17.3%, respectively, according to BLS data.
White House Director of the National Economic Council Brian Deese told Yahoo Finance in a new interview that “the bottom line is prices are too high when [consumers] are buying groceries or buying gas.”
He added that President Biden is focused on “taking action” to lower prices for consumers across the board, explaining that the White House is working on legislation to lower the cost of prescription drugs, as well as providing clean energy incentives to decrease the overall costs of utility bills.
“That’s going to provide relief to some families that are having to pay too much,” he said.
Still, Deese pointed out some positives in the June report, citing the price declines of certain meats with bacon falling for the second straight month in a row (down 1.9%.) Beef and veal also saw month-over-month declines of 2.3%.
“Overall, food at home — the food that you buy in a grocery store — saw some moderation from the increase from last month,” the director noted, although he admitted that “at the end of the day, what we should be doing is acting to bring down costs for consumers.”
Alexandra is a Senior Entertainment and Food Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @alliecanal8193 and email her at alexandra.canal@yahoofinance.com
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