The consumer price index for the region of 16 provinces jumped 8.2% last year, according to federal data released on Tuesday. This is just below the 8.5% national inflation rate reported the same day by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices are expected to continue to rise in a range of goods this year, but some economists believe inflation is expected to slow in the coming months as year-on-year comparisons become less dramatic. The Bureau of Labor Statistics monitors Minneapolis-St. Prices in the Paul metro area on a bi-monthly basis since 2017 and the inflation rate in March were the highest recorded in this short period. National inflation is at its highest level in 40 years. After the gains of the shares early in the morning, the optimism of the investors fell to the new federal data with the markets closing on Tuesday. The cost of food production has risen due to rising costs of transportation, labor and raw materials – and that inflation is being passed on to consumers. “This is very difficult for households to cope with tight fiscal constraints and have very little flexibility,” Lael Brainard, a member of the Federal Reserve’s board, told a Fed event in Minneapolis last week. “For low-income families, with more than three-quarters of their income taken from necessities, when the price of these needs rises, there is really very little they can do to replace or mitigate it.” When it comes to food prices, Minnesota buyers experienced another month of significant price increases, albeit less serious than the nation as a whole. Year-on-year, grocery prices rose 10.3% nationwide and 7.3% in the twin cities in March. However, prices for some consumables — such as cereals, bakery products, and alcohol — rose faster than the national average. …
