Inflation data showed that prices are rising faster than experts expected. The latest report on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which was released on June 10 by the US Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), showed that the average hourly wages of American workers are at their lowest in the current century.

Inflation returns to 2008 levels

One of Bitcoin's best friends is inflation. The deflationary nature allows the asset to be used as a store of value without worrying about inflation negatively affecting its price. Since the announcement of the coronavirus pandemic around the world, central banks have launched uncontrolled money printing and we will now deal with the consequences of this event.

In May, 12 months after the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic outside of China, the US CPI rose 0.6%. This is 5% more than a year ago, and means that inflation in the United States is now at its highest level since 2008, which saw the worst financial crisis. Cryptans, of course, did not pass by such information.

US consumer price index. Source: Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics

“The US has just hit the peak of inflation in 13 years. This was unexpected for politicians and economists, - explained Dan Held, a spokesman for the Kraken crypto exchange, on Twitter. "For a person of average intelligence, this was quite clear, given the massive printing of money (incentive payments) that has occurred since the start of the coronavirus pandemic."

Held noted that wages did not keep pace with these changes, which means that American workers earned on average less per hour than in any other year of the current century (adjusted for inflation).

“Wages did not keep pace with inflation, and workers became poorer. Wages are much more rigid than prices, which are much easier to regulate, ”he concluded, pointing to a similar period in the 1970s.
The consumer price index hides the true inflation rate

Although the CPI still appears to be relatively low in percentage terms, many important parameters are not included in this indicator. For example, products and services that give citizens confidence in the future, such as real estate prices and college tuition.

MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor pointed this out in the spring:

“The consumer price index is a misleading measure of inflation. Volatility is a deceptive measure of risk. The first distracts us from the problem, and the second from the solution. "