Prices in the greater Seattle area rose 4.9% over the past year, according to federal data released Tuesday, outpacing a national inflation rate that itself hit a three-year high of 3.8%.
“We are getting hit even harder than much of the rest of the country,” KIRO host Ursula Reutin said on “The Gee and Ursula Show.” “The biggest culprit is the energy prices. Gas prices in our region, as we’ve talked about on the show, shot up nearly 30% in just two months after the war in Iran disrupted oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, and that is why gas prices this morning are back up near $6 a gallon.”
The Seattle-area energy index surged 23.7% year over year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), leading to spikes in nearly everything Washingtonians buy…