How the drivers of inflation have changed.

Americans have been dealing with rapid inflation for two years now, but what’s driving the price increases has evolved.

The data shows that the painful inflation that emerged two years ago from pandemic disruptions, and the government’s response to them, was only exacerbated by the war in Ukraine. That combination led to the biggest jump in price increases in half a century. Inflation is now cooling as supply problems recede and the economy slows down, but the road back to normal is still long and uncertain.

Current inflation in the US is drastically different from the price increases that first appeared in 2021, driven by persistent price increases for services such as airline tickets and child care rather than the cost of goods.

Service chargeincluding non-physical purchases such as tutoring and tax filing, began to rise rapidly in late 2021. Because families had more money than usual after months at home and repeated stimulus checks, households were in good spending shape and landlords, childcare providers and restaurants could charge more without losing customers.

The rise in prices during the 24 months ending March eroded wage increases, strained consumers and spurred a response from the Federal Reserve that could trigger a recession.