A look at what 40-year high inflation means for you

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — With inflation rates hitting yet another 40-year high in June, attention is once again focused on the higher prices Americans are paying for everyday goods.

U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) said the effects of inflation hit hardest in portions of rural America, including the East North Central, South Atlantic, West South Central, and Mountain regions experiencing higher inflation than the national average, which is high itself—a Consumer Price Index (CPI) increase of 9.1% compared to June 2021.

Capito’s office said the largest contributors to inflation were transportation (up 20%), housing (7.3%), and food (up 10.4%), which represented made up approximately 85% of the 9.1% increase in consumer prices and the gas price index rose by nearly 60% in June, marking 15 consecutive months with gas price inflation at more than 40%.

Since January of 2021, Capito’s office said the CPI-U is up 13.3% and the gasoline price index is up 89%, which her office said is the highest of any president in more than four decades, and with the food price index is up 12.6%, Capito’s office said that’s the highest of any presidency since Jimmy Carter’s.

What does that mean?

In2013dollars.com uses U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data on inflation rates to show the effect inflation alone has had on prices. The table below shows how much Americans would have to pay in 2020, 2021 and 2022 on average for the same type of product due to inflation: