Inflation reached its highest level since January, and beef prices rose sharply

2:10 a.m. Beef Products on display at a grocery store on July 22, 2025 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Consumer prices rose 3% in September from a year earlier, extending a month-long rise that led to the highest level of inflation since January, government data showed on Friday. The figure was lower than economists’ expectations.

The latest data marked a slight increase compared to the 2.9% annual growth recorded a month earlier. Acceleration of price growth during in recent months has coincided with a wave of tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.

According to the data, beef prices rose by almost 15% in the year ending in September. Trump has sparked outrage among some ranchers over a plan to import beef from Argentina to lower U.S. prices.

Egg prices, a longtime symbol of rising costs, fell nearly 5% in September. Egg prices are about 1% lower than they were a year ago. According to data, the price of coffee has increased by 19% over the past year.

US Consumer Price Index Bureau of Labor Statistics

The White House touted a September inflation reading that was below economists’ expectations on Friday, with press secretary Caroline Leavitt posting on social media that it was “good news” for American families.

Levitt also said on X that the ongoing government shutdown would likely result in no inflation report for October, “leaving businesses, markets, families and the Federal Reserve in chaos.”

The data came in more than a week later than originally planned, as the government shutdown severely hampered the release of information about the economy.

The latest acceleration in price growth comes at a shaky moment for the nation’s economy. Inflation has risen in recent months and hiring has slowed, creating the risk of an economic double whammy known as “stagflation.”

Economic conditions have put the Federal Reserve in a difficult position. to bind If the Fed raises interest rates as a hedge against tariff-induced inflation, it risks tipping the economy into recession. On the other hand, if the Fed cuts rates to stimulate the economy amid slowing hiring, it risks increasing spending and worsening inflation.

The Fed cut its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point last month, marking its first one-percent rate cut this year to revive the labor market.

Vegetables on display at a grocery store, August 15, 2025 in Delray Beach, Florida. Joe Riddle/Getty Images

“It’s a difficult situation when our goals are in such tension,” Powell said, but he added that the balance of risks has shifted toward greater concern because of slow hiring.

According to the CME FedWatch Tool, policymakers will make an additional quarter-point cut at next week’s meeting, a measure of the market

But Friday’s strong inflation reading could calm Fed officials, as a rate cut would increase the likelihood of a sharp increase in demand that would further push up prices.

Tariffs have contributed modestly to a surge in headline inflation in recent months, analysts told ABC News earlier, but the overall price increase was mostly driven by higher housing and food prices with little to do with Trump’s levies.

Last week, President Donald Trump threatened to impose 100% tariffs on all Chinese-made goods from November 1 in response to restrictions on rare earth minerals. Beijing has publicly stood firm on this policy, leaving the two sides at an impasse with huge implications for the prices of consumer goods imported from China.

Source: abcnews.go.com