Gas Prices, Inflation Rise; Need for Payday Loans Not Far Behind
By J.J. CameronPayday Loan Writer
It's not an ideal time to be a consumer. Inflation registered another sizable increase in May, pushed higher by soaring gasoline prices. More and more individuals will soon be turning to online payday loans in order to deal with such difficulties.
Most worrisome of all is the following: there's further evidence that the jump in energy costs is beginning to cause even more widespread inflation troubles. The Labor Department reported Wednesday that its Consumer Price Index posted a 0.4 percent increase in May after an even bigger 0.6 percent rise in April. Gasoline prices jumped by 4.9 percent and have been soaring this year at an annual rate of 69.4 percent.
It seems like a cruel joke, but people may soon need a payday loan in order to afford a full tank.
Excluding energy and food, core inflation rose by a larger-than-expected 0.3 percent. That increase is certain to get attention at the Federal Reserve, where Chairman Ben Bernanke last week called a recent uptick in core inflation rates "unwelcome." Investors, meanwhile, are concerned that the Fed will raise rates for a 17th time at its next meeting on June 28-29, increasing risks that the hoped-for soft landing for the economy will instead be a more severe slowdown.