Headline RoundupDecember 10th, 2021

Perspectives: Annual Inflation Hits 39-Year High

Summary from the AllSides News Team

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that consumer prices rose 6.8% in the 12 months ending in November — the largest yearly increase in 39 years. 

Prices rose 0.8% in November after rising 0.9% in October, matching many economists' expectations. The report said that while inflation was broad-based, “larger contributors” included “gasoline, shelter, food, used cars and trucks, and new vehicles.” Stocks continued to climb on Friday, with the S&P 500 closing at a record high. The same day, a Google executive announced that despite raising record profits, the company would not automatically adjust employees’ wages for high inflation. 

The inflation report renewed a debate around whether inflation was “transitory” and whether government spending was a major cause. Voices from the right tended to attribute high inflation to government spending and the Biden administration’s purportedly insufficient response. Voices from the left tended to downplay concerns about high inflation, attributing it to supply chain disruptions and a post-pandemic surge in consumer spending. 

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