Consumer and Producer Price Indexes Have Seen Historic Increases Over the Past Year

Since November of 2020, both the Consumer and Producer Price Indexes (CPI & PPI) have seen historic increases. The Composite Index, which measures the average of all of the CPI’s items, has increased by 16.8 in 2021 alone, and rose from 260.2 in November 2020 to 277.9 in November 2021. After experiencing a dip in April 2020, the PPI has been increasing ever since, with the rate of increase exploding in 2021. The PPI reached 243.6 in November 2021.

Consumer Price Index

The Composite Index of the CPI has increased significantly since November 2020 and had a faster rate of increase than in recent years. The Composite Index aggregates the eight items measured by the index and provides an overall look at how the prices consumers pay for goods is changing. It is not only the Composite that saw significant increases, however. Transportation saw the highest increase of any individual item over the past year. Starting in November 2020 at 202.8, the Transportation Index jumped to 245.5 by November 2021. Housing and Food & Beverages also saw faster rates of increase over the past year. Food and Beverages saw the second highest increase, rising from 268.5 in November 2020 to 284.2 in November 2021. Housing followed closely behind with an increase from 273.3 to 286.3 over the past year. None of the items tracked in the CPI have seen a decrease over the past year.

Producer Price Index

The PPI has seen a huge increase over the past year, the largest one-year increase in the PPI’s history. In November 2020, the PPI sat at 198.3. This was more in line with where the PPI had been before the beginning of the pandemic. However, the PPI has continuously increased through the most currently available month, November 2021. The PPI has reached 243.6, by far the highest mark since 2011. Over the past year, the PPI has increased by 45.3.