In the past week, many Americans remained laser-focused on the economy, inflation and how those forces could impact their lives. But it is almost impossible not to notice that trips to the grocery store or gas station are more painful than they were last year.
Here’s a snapshot of some of the latest economic data and news and what it potentially means for you.
Key inflation gauge jumps to highest level in 3 years
A key inflation measure jumped in March as gas prices soared, the latest sign that the Iran war is pushing up the cost of living and delaying any interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
An inflation gauge monitored by the Fed rose 0.7% in March from February, up sharply from the previous month, the Commerce Department said Thursday. Compared with a year ago, prices rose 3.5%, the biggest increase in almost three years.
Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core inflation rose 0.3% in March from February, and it was 3.2% higher than a year earlier. The annual figure is above February’s reading of 3%.
Gasoline prices rocketed higher, setting new multi-year highs for four consecutive days starting Tuesday. The average price for gallon of regular gasoline had the largest overnight gain since the war began on Friday, hitting $4.39, prices continued to climb Saturday.
U.S. economy grew 2% from January-March,
The U.S. economy accelerated at the start of 2026, expanding at a modest 2% pace from January through March after recovering from last fall’s 43-day federal government shutdown. But the outlook is clouded by the Iran war.
The Commerce Department reported Thursday that gross domestic product — the nation’s output of goods and services — rebounded from a lackluster 0.5% expansion the last three months of 2025. The federal government’s spending and investment grew at a 9.3% annual rate in the first quarter, adding more than half a percentage point to growth after lopping off 1.16 percentage points in fourth-quarter 2025.
US consumer confidence edges higher in April
U.S. consumer confidence rose modestly in April despite growing anxiety over soaring energy prices brought on by the war in Iran.
The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index inched up to 92.8 in April from 92.2 in March.
Though the gauge measuring American consumers’ confidence has ticked up the past two months, the reading remains mired near its lowest level since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Respondents’ comments about prices, oil, gas and the war increased in April as the national average for a gallon of gas in the U.S. rose 30 cents in just the past week to $4.43.
Average US long-term mortgage rate rises, ending 3-week slide
The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate rose this week, pushing up borrowing costs for prospective homebuyers in the midst of the spring homebuying season.
The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.3% from 6.23% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. That’s still down from one year ago, when the rate averaged 6.76%.
The increase ends a three-week slide, bringing the average rate back to where it was two weeks ago.
Weekly unemployment claims fall to lowest level in more than 50 years
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits tumbled to their lowest level more than 50 years last week despite a number of economic headwinds including the war in Iran.
U.S. jobless aid applications for the week ending April 25 fell by 26,000 to 189,000, down from the previous week’s 215,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s well below the 214,000 new applications analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet were expecting.
Filings for unemployment benefits are considered a proxy for U.S. layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market.
According to High Frequency Economics, this week’s number for new jobless aid applications was the fewest since September of 1969.
Markets edged higher with most Big Tech companies posting big profits
The U.S. stock market set more records to end the week after Apple and a slew of other Big Tech earnings powered markets higher. Oil prices continued to shoot higher even though prices moderated Friday. Many stock markets across the world were closed Friday for the the May Day holiday.
The S&P 500, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the Nasdaq composite all ended the week higher.
Chapman writes for the Associated Press.
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