Rising prices and Iran war put economy at center of midterms – Spectrum News

Rising prices and Iran war put economy at center of midterms  Spectrum News

The producer price index, which measures what businesses pay for goods and services, was up 6.3% in September compared with a year ago. New Labor Department numbers on inflation are higher than what economists expected, adding fuel to the raging debate about the economy in the campaign for Congress. Thursday’s numbers were the second concerning reading on inflation in two days. On Wednesday, the Labor Department said consumer prices were up 3.7% last month compared with a year ago. There has been a big spike in diesel and gas prices in particular. According to AAA, the national average for regular gas hit $4.33 on Thursday, up $1.35 from the start of the Iran war.

On the campaign trail, President Donald Trump has been painting a rosy picture of the economy and selling the price hikes as temporary. “We have the lowest level of poverty … we have the highest level of individual wealth, and more people are working in our country today than ever before,” he said during a rally Wednesday night in Kalispell, Montana. But despite Trump's upbeat pronouncements, Americans are increasingly putting the blame on the president. An AP-NORC poll last week found just 25% approved of his handling of the economy. Democratic candidates across the country have been eager to lean into these economic concerns. “How is