ATLANTA — The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a national inflation level of 4.9% in its latest Consumer Price Index.
While the Federal Reserve remains concerned about the lack of progress in curbing overall price increases, in Atlanta, prices remain elevated and higher than the rest of the nation.
According to the BLS, Atlanta’s regional inflation level was 5.8%, nearly a full percentage above the national level.
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Across the U.S., the biggest driver of inflation pressure remains the cost of housing, according to BLS, though it’s not the only large contributor.
The cost of shelter, such as rent and mortgages, was up 11.4% together, though rent on its own had a larger increase. In the Atlanta metro area, rent prices increased 14.2% from the last report on the region.
Nationally, the cost of shelter was up 0.4%, but the BLS report showed its “relative importance” was 34.5% of expenses. Rent alone was up 0.6% nationally, making Atlanta’s rental price increases multiple levels higher.
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“The index for shelter was the largest contributor to the monthly all items increase, followed by increases in the index for used cars and trucks and the index for gasoline,” BLS reported. “The increase in the gasoline index more than offset declines in other energy component indexes, and the energy index rose 0.6% in April.”
Similarly, Atlanta’s higher inflation was in part due to increasing food costs.
“The food index advanced 8.6% for the 12 months ending in April, led by a 12.4% increase in the food away from home index,” BLS said. “The food at home index rose 6.5% over the past year as five of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased.”
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For groceries, animal protein such as meat, poultry, fish and eggs saw a 2.5% increase on the shelf, while the cost for dairy items like milk or cheese fell 1.6%.
Another expense pushing inflation in Atlanta was gasoline, which had an overall increase of 2.3%, according to the BLS report. Nationally, gas prices increased more than in Atlanta, with a 3% average.
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