Washington D.C — Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) latest inflation report shows that working families are struggling to crawl out from the hole of rising costs created by congressional Republicans.
NBC News reports that inflation has been “wiping out wage gains” as Republicans’ war in Iran continues to raise energy costs. That cost increase comes on top of the additional costs imposed by congressional Republicans’ tariffs and cuts to health care, SNAP, and clean energy incentives.
“Republican policies are making it harder for Americans to fill up their cars, put food on the table, and meet basic needs,” said Unrig Our Economy Campaign Director Leor Tal. “The latest inflation figures demonstrate what the American people understand all too well: working families are footing the bill for a cost-raising Washington Republican agenda.”
NBC News: Inflation remained stubborn in July as wages slowed for workers
Key Points:
- Inflation as measured by the consumer price index rose 0.1% from June to July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Wednesday, showing that costs broadly remained elevated for consumers amid volatile energy prices.
- But in a troubling sign for consumers, [inflation] remains above the rate of wage growth, which as of last month was pacing at 3.2%, according to the BLS. Average hourly earnings slipped 0.2% from a year earlier, as well, the agency said Wednesday.
- Inflation has been wiping out wage gains for the past four months, Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, wrote on X.“For middle-income and lower-income Americans, this is the key issue,” Long wrote. “There will likely be some belt-tightening ahead.”
- Energy prices, which are the primary cause of inflation’s spike this year, have moved higher as the war with Iran shows no sign of ending soon.
- Gasoline prices in Wednesday’s report showed a 2.9% decline during the month, although that is likely in the rearview mirror now. The price of electricity was nearly unchanged month over month, rising 0.1%.
- Brent crude oil hit $90 earlier Wednesday morning, while U.S. crude oil rose to almost $84 per barrel. The national regular gas price average also rose Wednesday, once again hitting $4.03 per gallon.
- The report showed that the price of medical care, airline fares, communication, education and recreation all increased in the month.
- The BLS also said that shelter costs rose 0.1% in July, “accounting for roughly two-thirds of the monthly all items increase.” The “index for food also increased 0.1% over the month, as the index for food away from home increased 0.3%,” it said.
- Even before Wednesday’s figures, some notable Federal Reserve officials were already calling for a rate hike. The Fed has kept rates unchanged since the United States and Israel launched the Iran war, even as other central banks in Europe and Japan have raised rates.
- “Now is the time to act,” Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack wrote Tuesday on LinkedIn. “The longer we wait to take action to bring inflation back to our 2 percent objective, the more challenging it will be to bring it back down and the more expensive it will be for the American people,” she added.
To learn more about the campaign, visit UnrigOurEconomy.com or contact press@unrigoureconomy.com
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About Unrig Our Economy
Unrig Our Economy is a national campaign to fix the rules of our economy to make it work for working people. We know that when the middle class does well, all of us do well — which is why we’re fighting on behalf of working Americans and holding corporations, their wealthy executives, and the politicians who enable them accountable.