Energy inflation hit its largest yearly increase in more than 40 years, according to a report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The Consumer Price Index report, released Wednesday morning, showed a 41.5% energy inflation rate from June 2021 to June 2022, the highest since 1980, according to the BLS. Gasoline prices increased 59.9%, but other energy sources increased as well, with electricity up 13.7%.
“Energy is the building block of our economy, which makes today’s energy inflation numbers particularly concerning,” American Exploration & Production Council CEO Anne Bradbury told the Daily Caller News Foundation.
“The energy index rose 7.5% over the month and contributed nearly half of the all items increase, with the gasoline index rising 11.2% and the other major component indexes also rising,” the BLS said in a statement.
President Joe Biden defended the high inflation numbers after the CPI report came out, arguing that the statistics were “out of date” and gas prices have decreased throughout the month of June.
The overall CPI increased 1.3% between May and June, with increases in nearly all categories, including food, vehicles and other commodities and shelter.
Meanwhile, the average American has lost $3,400 in yearly income since Biden took office, with a 4.4% average decrease, E.J. Antoni, a research fellow for regional economics in the Center for Data Analysis at the Heritage Foundation, told the DCNF.
“Energy prices are trickling down into everything and American families are being crushed,” Antoni said.
The Biden administration has blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine and Republican efforts to thwart his crackdown on consumer price gouging for soaring energy prices. Putin has cut off energy supply to Europe and obstructed the transport of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea, leading to global food shortages.
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The administration has also blocked domestic oil and gas leases, and U.S. oil companies say the administration’s environmental policies make it difficult to increase production.
“These alarming inflation numbers are the clearest sign yet that the Biden administration and Congress should focus on working with us on real solutions to increase domestic oil and natural gas production to help bring down energy costs for the American people,” said Bradbury.
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