A key inflation gauge sets 40-year high as gas and food soar

WASHINGTON (AP) — An inflation gauge closely monitored by the Federal Reserve jumped 6.4% in February 2022 compared with a year ago, with sharply higher prices for food, gasoline and other necessities squeezing Americans’ finances. The figure reported Thursday (March 31, 2022) by the Commerce Department was the largest year-over-year rise since January 1982. Excluding volatile prices for food and energy, so-called core inflation increased 5.4% in February from 12 months earlier.