President Biden praised Wednesday’s U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report showing how inflation continued to fall in July, though he admitted that “prices are still too high” as millions of Americans grapple with a cost of living that remains higher than it was before Biden took office.
The Labor Department on Wednesday said that the consumer price index (CPI), a broad measure of how much everyday goods like gasoline, groceries and rent cost, rose 0.2% in July from the previous month, in line with expectations. Prices climbed 2.9% from the same time last year. It marked the lowest level of inflation since March 2021.
“We have more work to do to lower costs for hardworking Americans, but we are making real progress, with wages rising faster than prices for 17 months in a row,” Biden said in a statement released by the White House.
Data from the Labor Department shows that shelter, electricity, auto insurance and food away from home have all increased by double digits since January 2021.
INFLATION RISES 2.9% IN JULY, LESS THAN EXPECTED
The cost of shelter was up 22.1% in July, according to indexes tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Rent costs rose 0.3% for the month and are up 5.1% from the same time last year.
Groceries cost 1.1% more than they did last year, and when compared with January 2021 — before the inflation crisis began — prices are up more than 21%.
The cost of food climbed 0.2% last month and is up 2.2% from the same time last year. The food-away-from-home index rose by 0.2%, while the cost of groceries inched 0.1% higher.
While energy prices remained flat in July after falling the previous two months, the cost of electricity is 28.5% higher today than it was before Biden assumed office.
While the prices of new and used vehicles fell in July, car owners are faced with skyrocketing insurance costs. Auto insurance premiums jumped 1.2% in July; prices are up a stunning 18.6% from the same time last year.
Auto insurance costs are up a whopping 54.7% since Biden took office.
US HOME PRICES JUST HIT ANOTHER ALL-TIME HIGH
Biden acknowledged that “prices are still too high” for many American families.
“Large corporations are sitting on record profits and not doing enough to lower prices,” Biden said. “That’s why we are taking on Big Pharma to lower prescription drug prices. We’re cutting red tape to build more homes while taking on corporate landlords that unfairly increase rent.”
“And we’re taking on price gouging and junk fees to lower everyday costs from groceries to air travel,” the president continued.
Biden also hit Republicans, saying that they would “raise prices for middle class families while cutting taxes for billionaires and big corporations.”
Trump, however, delivered remarks in Asheville, North Carolina, on Wednesday, blasting both Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the 2024 Democratic nominee for president, for mishandling the “surging economy with no inflation” that he left them in January 2021.
“I gave Harris and Biden an economic miracle, and they quickly turned it into an economic nightmare with a nation-wrecking agenda ripped straight out of Kamala’s San Francisco liberal playbook,” Trump said.
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“You’re paying the price for Kamala’s liberal extremism at the gas pump, at the grocery counter, and on your mortgage bill,” the former president added.
Fox Business’ Megan Henney and Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
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