Inflation rose last month to its highest level since February as President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs push up the cost of a range of goods, including furniture, clothing, and large appliances.
Consumer prices rose 2.7% in June from a year earlier, the Labor Department said Tuesday, up from an annual increase of 2.4% in May. On a monthly basis, prices climbed 0.3% from May to June, after rising just 0.1% the previous month.
Worsening inflation poses a political challenge for President Donald Trump, who promised during last year’s presidential campaign to immediately lower costs.
The sharp inflation spike after the pandemic was the worst in four decades and soured most Americans on former president Joe Biden’s handling of the economy.
Higher inflation will also likely heighten the Federal Reserve’s reluctance to cut its short-term interest rate, as Trump is loudly demanding.
Trump has insisted repeatedly that there is “no inflation” and because of that,
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