Inflation reaches its highest level in three decades with a rise of 6.2% in October

By Ben Popken -

Inflation is not going to disappear quickly, but prices are growing rapidly: the last consumer price index for October registered an increase of 6.2% compared to the same month last year, according to data published this Wednesday by the Office of Labor Statistics.

This is

and far exceeds the expectations of economists, who forecast a rise of 5.9%.

The October data follow the path of previous months of acceleration in the rise in prices compared to the levels of recent years.

The largest increases compared to the previous month were registered in food, which rose 0.9%;

energy, which rose 4.8%;

and housing, which increased 0.5%.

Used cars and trucks reversed the late summer decline and were up 2.5%, and new vehicles posted a 1.4% increase.

[The economy gains 531,000 jobs in October and rebounds strongly after a disappointing summer due to fear of COVID]

There were some decreases, such as airfares, which fell 0.7%, and alcoholic beverages, which fell 0.2%.

The economy is still reeling from changing consumer habits in the aftermath of the pandemic, which has sparked a global shipping crisis as the supply chain struggles to keep up and suffers from its own coronavirus-related work problems.

This has led to waves of rising costs throughout the supply chain, and producers and retailers have not yet passed them all on to buyers.

But consumers are beginning to notice as rising food prices are affecting their monthly budgets.

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According to an October survey by Bank of America Global Research, nearly 60% of households said grocery stores were the place where prices increased the most, followed by restaurants and takeout.

Sandra Cawthern is an 82-year-old retiree from Florida who lives solely on Social Security benefits.

For her, one of the biggest financial impacts of the pandemic has been the increase in food prices.

"A scrawny chicken wing costs $ 1 for eight-piece fried chicken at Publix," he said.

Price increases are being seen throughout the food aisle.

The median price of a carton of

in January 2020, before the pandemic, was $ 3.29, according to data from NielsenIQ.

Now, it's $ 3.53.

A

used to cost an average of $ 2.20, but now it has risen to $ 2.52.

The

has risen 2.99 to $ 3.24 a pound, the

fresh has risen to $ 5.93 a pound,

sandwich has risen from $ 2.44 to $ 2.77, and a

has risen 4.72 at $ 6.45.