American consumers continue to be weighed down by soaring levels of inflation as the consumer price index remained at a sky-high clip of 8.6% — the highest since 1981 — thanks to skyrocketing oil prices as well as the rising cost of food, rent and health care.
The 8.6% year-over-year figure is higher than the 8.3% that was predicted by analysts — and exceeded the 8.3% posted in April, when it dipped from 8.5% in March.
Experts at Dow Jones expected the consumer price index to rise 0.7% — an increase from 0.3% in April. Instead, it rose 1%, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The stunning jump in inflation quickly roiled the stock market. The Dow plunged 400 points at the open and was down 800 at 10:30 am. That came after it nosedived 600 points to close Thursday ahead of the release of the CPI data.
