US inflation rockets to 13-year high

Prices keep rising in the United States, putting a squeeze on American consumers' wallets. That trend got worse in June, according to CNN.

The consumer price index, the nation's key inflation measure, jumped 0.9% in June, the largest one-month increase in 13 years. Over the last 12 months, prices were up 5.4%, the biggest jump in annual inflation in nearly 13 years.

Food prices are up 2.4% in the last 12 months, but prices for dining out rose 4.2%. Restaurants are having trouble attracting help as they try to reopen, which has led to higher wages. That increased cost is getting passed onto customers.

But volatile food and fuel prices aren't the only drivers of higher costs. Stripping out those categories, so-called core CPI rose 0.9% in June and 4.5% over the last 12 months. That represented the biggest 12-month increase in that closely watched measure in 30 years.

Record prices for used cars accounted for more than a third of the overall rise in prices. Used car prices were up 10.5% in June — the largest one-month jump in records that go back nearly 70 years, and a stunning 45.2% over the last 12 months.

New car prices are also up 5.3% over the last year, hitting record levels.