The Consumer Price Index jumped 3.3 percent in the year through March, a two-year high, reflecting higher costs for energy and goods affected by disruptions in the Middle East.

U.S. consumer sentiment plunged to a record low in early April and consumers anticipated a ​surge in inflation in the next 12 ‌months, a survey showed on Friday.

A record surge in gasoline prices has been accompanied by higher fertilizer and diesel costs, which are seen rippling through to airfares as well as food and transportation costs.

Monthly price increases as measured by the Fed's preferred gauge were persistent in February, the Commerce Department said Thursday, showing that inflation remained elevated even before the Iran war began last month.

The first reading on inflation since the Iran war began showed prices paid by American consumers surged in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday.

Within a few weeks, other prices were rising, too: airlines hiked fares and fees to cover their own costs, some delivery services added surcharges, and the prices of other things produced in the Middl...