US inflation continues to rise

Consumer prices in the United States continued to rise in September, posting a 3.7% increase compared to the same month last year-driven primarily by energy costs-according to official data released yesterday, AFP reports.

Month-over-month, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.6%, following a 0.4% increase in August, the US Department of Labor reported.

The official figures align with the expectations of analysts surveyed by MarketWatch.

In August, the annual US inflation rate stood at 3.4%; while analysts had expected an acceleration, they had anticipated a rate of 3.6%-slightly lower than the figure announced by the authorities.

As expected, the accelerated price growth in September was driven mainly by rising energy costs-particularly fuel prices, which surged 15.3% compared to the previous month. Overall, energy prices rose by 5.2% month-over-month. Year-on-year, energy prices in the US rose by over 20%-and fuel prices by nearly 75%-driven by the war launched by Israel and the United States against Iran and its consequences for energy production and global trade, particularly the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of global hydrocarbon supplies pass.

Consequently, transportation costs also saw a sharper rise in September, increasing by 0.6% compared to the previous year; this marked the largest increase since March, shortly after the conflict involving Iran began.

On the other hand, food prices remained stable in September-welcome news for American consumers' wallets, given that price hikes are a major issue in the midterm election campaign taking place in early November.

Another piece of good news for American consumers: healthcare costs continued to decline, falling by 0.7% month-on-month and by 3.3% year-on-year.

Against this backdrop, core inflation-which excludes food and energy-rose by 2.6% year-on-year in September, following a 2.4% increase in August.

Month-on-month, core inflation rose by 0.3% in September; this increase was similar to that seen in August but slightly above market expectations, which had anticipated a slight slowdown.