How It Started... How It's Going: Energy prices soar as Biden pursues green agenda
A 'Mornings with Maria' panel weighs in on the March Core CPI, the Fed's expected rate cuts and their overall market outlook.
Energy prices have shot up by more than a third since President Biden assumed office in 2021 as stubborn inflation continues to tax Americans.
The Labor Department's new Consumer Price Index (CPI) report on Tuesday showed that gasoline and housing costs were the biggest drivers of a 0.4% increase in March. Prices climbed 3.5% from the same time last year, higher than economists had predicted. Oil prices have reached a five-month-high.
«There is no improvement here, we’re moving in the wrong direction,» said Greg McBride, chief financial analyst for Bankrate.
«The usual trouble spots persist — shelter, motor vehicle insurance, maintenance, and repairs, service costs. Add electricity to that list, up 0.9% in March and 5% over the past year,» he added.
INFLATION ACCELERATES MORE THAN EXPECTED IN MARCH AS HIGH PRICES PERSIST
Tuesday's inflation numbers punctuate what has been a dreadful three years for energy consumers. The overall cost of energy in March is up 36.9% from where it was in Jan. 2021, according to the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.
All categories of energy are more expensive today than three years ago. In Jan. 2021, electricity cost $0.14 per kilowatt-hour and as of March 2024 it costs $0.17, an increase of 28%.
Energy prices have climbed nearly 37% since President Biden assumed office in January 2021. (Fox News / Fox News)
Every driver in America knows that gasoline prices surged to exorbitant highs in 2022, following international disruptions in oil production as a result of war between Russia and Ukraine. Prices have since come down, but overall gas still costs
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