Consumer prices in the U.S. shot up by more than expected in the month of May, according to a highly anticipated report released by the Labor Department on Friday.
The Labor Department said its consumer price index jumped by 1.0 percent in May after rising by 0.3 percent in April. Economists had expected consumer prices to increase by 0.7 percent.
Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices climbed by 0.6 percent in May, matching the growth seen in the previous month. Core prices were expected to rise by 0.5 percent.
The report also showed the annual rate of consumer price growth accelerated to 8.6 percent in May from 8.3 percent in April, showing the biggest surge since December 1981. The annual growth was expected to be unchanged.
Meanwhile, the annual rate of core consumer price growth slowed to 6.0 percent in May from 6.2 percent in April. Economists had expected the pace of growth to decelerate to 5.9 percent.
