Inflation accelerated for a third straight month in May amid a stalemate in negotiations to end a war with Iran that has pushed up energy prices, adding to the burden on already strained consumers.
The Consumer Price Index rose 4.2 percent in May from a year earlier, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Wednesday, a sharp rise from the 2.4 percent annual increase before the conflict started in February and the fastest pace since April 2023. Over the course of the month, overall prices jumped 0.5 percent.
-Lydia DePillis reporting for the New York Times
