Inflation rises in US amid Iran war, Hormuz blockade
Al Jazeera
Government report shows gasoline going up by 21.2 percent in March as petrol remains above $4 per gallon despite a truce.
Consumer prices in the United States have risen by nearly 1 percent in March – one of the highest short-term inflation rates in years – largely due to the disruption of the energy markets amid the war on Iran.
A report by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, released on Friday, showed that inflation in March rose by 0.9 percent, compared with 0.3 percent in February. It was the largest uptick since May 2022, which took place at the height of the cost-of-living crisis prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The March increase was driven by energy prices, with gasoline going up by 21.2 percent and fuel oil increasing by more than 30 percent.
“The index for energy increased 10.9 percent in March, the largest monthly increase in the index since September 2005,” the government report said.
After the US and Israel launched an all-out war on Iran on February 28, killing the country’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz, sending oil and gas prices across the world soaring.
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