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Inflation is hitting the Big Apple harder than a slew of other major US cities — with prices surging at their fastest pace since early last year, according to fresh government data released Wednesday.

From rent to groceries to school tuition, consumer prices across the New York and New Jersey metro area spiked 4.3% from a year ago faster than 12 other big cities across the country and marking their quickest clip since March 2023, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Wednesday.

The daunting report comes as the Consumer Price Index shows that prices nationwide rose 2.7% above the 2.6% increase seen in October, but falling in line with expectations, the Labor Department said. 

The numbers came in hotter than last month, but its likely not enough to stop the Federal Reserve from issuing a third round of interest rate cuts during its meeting next week. Investors odds of a quarter-point cut during the Dec. 17-Dec. 18 meeting shot up to 95% after the inflation report, according to CME FedWatch.

Inflation is cooling in most other parts of the country after massive pandemic-era highs of 9% in 2022 but the bustling Big Apple is seeing prices soar at the fastest pace of any major city measured by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Food prices rose 1.8% in November since the year before a 2.6% increase for dining out, and a 1.4% increase for food at-home, the data said. 

The gains were largely driven by a 4% increase in meat, poultry, fish and egg prices.

Many people talk to me about the added stress of making ends meet and even enjoying simple things such as a cup of coffee, Jonathan Alpert, a New York-based psychotherapist, told The Post. What was once a $3 indulgence is now close to $4 and at some independent coffee shops, well over $4. 

Housing prices in the city are rising faster than the national average. New York shelter prices rose 5.7% in November since the year before above the 4.7% national gain.

In NYC, there is a lot more demand for housing and its harder to build new construction, so you see shelter prices rising. Even a modest increase like 5.7% for shelter can have a very big impact on your overall household budget because of the already skyrocketing prices, Ted Jenkin, business consultant and co-founder of oXYGen Financial, told The Post.

New Yorkers aren’t catching a break on furniture, either. Household furnishings and operations, which tracks the prices of home goods and services, rose a whopping 6.9% in November way above the national 0.4% increase.

Household energy prices also shot up, with natural gas service costs jumping 13.9% though gasoline prices dropped 13.4% in the same period, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

New Yorkers are feeling the pain when it comes to everyday purchases, too, as clothing prices spiked 4.1% since last year and transportation prices rose 3.8%.

Some companies may be hiking their prices ahead of Gov. Kathy Hochuls congestion pricing, set to take effect Jan. 2025 since everything that comes in and out of NYC is on a truck, Mahoney Asset Management CEO Ken Mahoney told The Post.

The tolls will be like kerosene on a fire when it comes to the prices of everyday goods for city slickers, as companies will pass along the added costs to consumers, Mahoney said.

New York City students did not escape the hotter-than-usual inflation, either, as tuition prices jumped 5.1%.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics measures inflation in 23 metro areas. New York, Los Angeles and Chicago report monthly, while the others report bimonthly. 

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Politics

Labour will eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in a decade, environment secretary says

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3 hours ago

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July 20, 2025

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Labour will eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in a decade, environment secretary says

Labour will eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in 10 years, the environment secretary has told Sky News.

Steve Reed also pledged to halve sewage pollution from water companies by 2030 as he announced £104 billion of private investment to help the government do that.

But he told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips this “isn’t the end of our ambition”.

“Over a decade of national renewal, we’ll be able to eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages,” he said.

“But you have to have staging posts along the way, cutting it in half in five years is a dramatic improvement to the problem getting worse and worse and worse every single year.”

He said the water sector is “absolutely broken” and promised to rebuild it and reform it from “top to bottom”.

His earlier pledge to halve sewage pollution from water companies by 2030 is linked to 2024 levels.

The government said it is the first time ministers have set a clear target to reduce sewage pollution and is part of its efforts to respond to record sewage spills and rising water bills.

Ministers are also aiming to cut phosphorus – which causes harmful algae blooms – in half by 2028.

Environment Secretary Steve Reed. File pic: PA
Image:
Environment Secretary Steve Reed. File pic: PA

Mr Reed said families had watched rivers, coastlines and lakes “suffer from record levels of pollution”.

“My pledge to you: the government will halve sewage pollution from water companies by the end of the decade,” he added.

Addressing suggestions wealthier families would be charged more for their water, Mr Reed said there are already “social tariffs” and he does not think more needs to be done, as he pointed out there is help for those struggling to pay water bills.

Read more:
Why aquatic life is facing a double whammy as sewage overflows spill into rivers
Thames Water hit with largest-ever fine issued by regulator Ofwat

The announcement comes ahead of the publication of the Independent Water Commission’s landmark review into the sector on Monday morning.

The commission was established by the UK and Welsh governments as part of their joint response to failures in the industry, but ministers have already said they’ll stop short of nationalising water companies.

Mr Reed said he is eagerly awaiting the report’s publication and said he would wait to see what author Sir John Cunliffe says about Ofwat, the water regulator, following suggestions the government is considering scrapping it.

On Friday, the Environment Agency published data which showed serious pollution incidents caused by water firms increased by 60% in England last year, compared with 2023.

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Why sewage outflows are discharging into rivers

Meanwhile, the watchdog has received a record £189m to support hundreds of enforcement officers for inspections and prosecutions.

“One of the largest infrastructure projects in England’s history will clean up our rivers, lakes and seas for good,” Mr Reed said.

But the Conservatives have accused the Labour government of having so far “simply copied previous Conservative government policy”.

“Labour’s water plans must also include credible proposals to improve the water system’s resilience to droughts, without placing an additional burden on bill payers and taxpayers,” shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins added.

The Rivers Trust says sewage and wastewater discharges have taken place over the weekend, amid thunderstorms in parts of the UK.

Discharges take place to prevent the system from becoming overwhelmed, with storm overflows used to release extra wastewater and rainwater into rivers and seas.

Water company Southern Water said storm releases are part of the way sewage and drainage systems across the world protect homes, schools and hospitals from flooding.

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Science

Indian Scientists Unravel the Mystery Behind Rare Aurora Over Ladakh

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3 hours ago

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July 20, 2025

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Indian Scientists Unravel the Mystery Behind Rare Aurora Over Ladakh

In a village in Ladakh, there was experienced an eruption in the sky which turned the sky into red and green auroras on May 10, 2024. This has not been seen in the past 10 years. It got triggered by the fiery solar storm, called Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) which are magnetised and thrown from the Sun at a million km per hour distance. Such arruptions in masses, triggered by the filament eruptions and solar flames sped to millions of kilometer towards our planet. This kind of rare aura has been ignited from the fiery solar storm.

Indian Scientists Investigate

According to organiser, The indian scientists’ team, led by Dr. Wageesh Mishra, used the data from NASA, ESA and other ground facilities to find this auroral phenomenon at the Indian Astronomical Observatory, by applying the Flux Rope Internal State (FRIS) model in order to broaden the coronograph images. The evolving temperature, magnetic fields and structure of the Coronal Mass Ejections were mapped at the time of interplanetary journey. This is the first global study to chronicle CME thermal dynamics from the Sun to Earth, which is published in Astronomy & Astrophysics.

Unexpected Reheating of CMEs

In contrast to the expectations, the CMEs didn’t cool with their expansion. In fact, they heat up at their midway, absorbing heat and maintaining a constant temperature over time they impact Earth. This thermal restructuring is due to the collision of two CMEs, where the electrons release high temperatures and ions release mixed lower and higher temperatures predominantly.

Magnetic Collision Triggers Lights

Data from NASA’s Wind Spacecraft, when a solar storm reached Earth, shows that the plasma covered Earth in double flux ropes. These are twisted magnetic structures which can trigger potential geomagnetic disturbances. Such an entangled magnetic field brought auroras as far south. i.e. Ladakh, and produces a spectacular light show that was seen by the citizens of that place.

Global Impact and Research Breakthrough

This finding held significant implications for global space weather forecasting and India. Through the understanding of the interaction of CMEs’ thermal and magnetic changes, the scientists could better develop the early-warning systems for power grid issues, navigation outages and satellite disruptions.

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Politics

GENIUS Act blocks Big Tech, banks from dominating stablecoins: Circle exec

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4 hours ago

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July 20, 2025

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GENIUS Act blocks Big Tech, banks from dominating stablecoins: Circle exec

GENIUS Act blocks Big Tech, banks from dominating stablecoins: Circle exec

Circle’s Dante Disparte says the GENIUS Act ensures tech giants and banks can’t dominate the stablecoin market without facing strict structural and regulatory hurdles.

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