Inflation was cooling. The Iran war could send it racing higher again.

MoneyWatch Inflation was cooling. Now the Iran war could push it back to 2024 levels. .chip { background-image: url('/fly/bundles/cbsnewscore/images/chip-bgd/chip-bgd-moneywatch.jpg'); } By Aimee Picchi, Aimee Picchi Associate Managing Editor, MoneyWatch Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports. Read Full Bio Aimee Picchi, Mary Cunningham Mary Cunningham Reporter, MoneyWatch Mary Cunningham is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch. She previously worked at "60 Minutes," CBSNews.com and CBS News 24/7 as part of the CBS News Associate Program. Read Full Bio Mary Cunningham April 9, 2026 / 5:00 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google The war on inflation could be in for a major setback due to the Iran war. The Consumer Price Index this week is expected to show March prices rose at a 3.3% annual pace, the average of six separate forecasts reviewed by CBS News. That would mark the highest inflation rate since May 2024 and an almost 1 percentage-point jump from February.The CPI report will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET on Friday. "The impact of the war on energy prices will push headline CPI inflation well above 3% in March and above 4% by April," Oxford Economics forecast in a report on Wednesday.Inflationary pressures are being driven by higher energy prices tied to the Iran war, with the U.S. experiencing the largest one-month jump in fuel costs since at least 1957, according to Pantheon Economics. The conflict's impact on a wide range of goods and services is likely to last for months, and experts said the two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is unlikely to immediately ease global energy shortages.Higher fuel prices could push up the cost of other goods, including food, because of increased transportation and production costs. Energy prices tend to rise quickly...