Georgia policy group says inflation is not conquered, is becoming ingrained in economy

(The Center Square) — The country has not conquered inflation, and it has become ingrained in our economy, the research director of a leading Georgia policy group said.

On Thursday, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers rose 0.4% in September. The year-over-year inflation rate stands at 8.2%.

“The Biden administration prematurely declared victory in August after passage of the Inflation Reduction Act,” Erik Randolph, director of research for the Georgia Center for Opportunity, said in a statement. “But as we’ve seen in the weeks since, inflation has a strong foothold and isn’t going away anytime soon.

“It is the core inflation rate, which removes the cost of energy and food, both of which tend to be volatile, that demonstrates it is now ingrained. Core inflation was up 6.6% in September over the previous year,” Randolph added. “That’s an alarming trend. Food prices, too, are a major concern. Those are up 11.2% from last year. Unfortunately, there isn’t much hope on the horizon for inflation abating. Because of droughts and man-made shortages, food prices will likely continue its rise, and energy prices appear to be reversing their recent downward trend. In the meantime, core inflation shows no signs of abating.”

Randolph added that despite the Federal Reserve’s best efforts to fight inflation, “the only measure of success is that inflation is tamed.”

“The price level remains untouched,” Randolph said. “The price level is defined as the price ‘floor’ for what things cost in the economy. That will remain elevated going forward and continue to hit low-income and impoverished Americans the most for basics like food, energy, and housing.”

According to WalletHub, the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell metropolitan statistical area saw the country’s second-highest inflation level, behind only the Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale area in Arizona. Looking at the latest month compared to two months before, Atlanta saw the greatest change in the CPI, edging out Boston and San Diego, WalletHub said.