Consumer inflation rises faster than expected in October, CPI report shows
Labor Department releases closely watched October CPI inflation report
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This is a breaking news story about October consumer price index data. Please check back for updates.
Inflation accelerated in October as the pace of consumer price growth trended higher.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said on Wednesday that the consumer price index (CPI) – a broad measure of how much everyday goods like gasoline, groceries and rent cost – increased 0.4% on a monthly basis. It did not release an annual figure due to last year's government shutdown that prevented collection of October 2025 data.
People shop for groceries at a store in Arlington, Virginia, on June 10, 2026. (Li Rui/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Expectations vs. reality
The monthly figure was slightly higher than the estimates of economists polled by LSEG.
The cost of living breakdown
High inflation has created severe financial pressures in recent years for most U.S. households, which are forced to pay more for everyday necessities like food and rent. Price hikes are particularly difficult for lower-income Americans because they tend to spend more of their already-stretched paychecks on necessities and have less flexibility to save.