Brazil’s inflation hits double digits, punishing the poor

By DAVID BILLER and DIANE JEANTET
Associated Press

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Inflation has come roaring back in Brazil and surpassed 10% for the first time since 2016, according to data released Friday. Soaring prices of gas, meat, electricity and more are plunging tens of millions of poor Brazilians deeper into uncertainty. Pricier fuels reflect higher global oil prices as many nations shuffle off the pandemic and return to life with mobility. But there are uniquely local effects stoking Brazil’s inflation, especially drought that sent food prices surging and prompted pricier thermoelectric power generation. While headline inflation has just entered double-digit territory, prices for many specific items have been there for months, causing hardship among the poor.