The high price inflation in the USA accelerated further in February.

Consumer prices rose 7.9 percent year-on-year, the Labor Department said in Washington on Thursday.

This is the highest inflation rate since 1982. Analysts had expected this rate.

Inflation in the USA has risen steadily since last August.

The inflation rate was 7.5 percent in January and 7.0 percent in December.

The strongest price driver remains the high cost of energy, which has recently risen sharply due to the consequences of the war in Ukraine.

In February, energy prices increased by 25.6 percent compared to the same month last year.

In the world's largest economy, inflation continues to rise above the target of two percent targeted by the US Federal Reserve.

The Fed has signaled the first interest rate hike since the beginning of the corona pandemic for March.

The market expects interest rates to rise by 0.25 percentage points, but a larger step of 0.5 percentage points is not ruled out due to high inflation.

The core consumer price index, which excludes energy and food prices, was 6.4 percent.

Month-on-month, consumer prices rose 0.8 percent in February, as analysts expected, with the core index up 0.5 percent.