Mark Whitehouse, Columnist

Paying Up for Being Poor

Living expenses rise the most for those who can least afford it.

April 18, 2016 at 1:20 PM UTC

Mark Whitehouse is a member of the editorial board covering global economics and finance. Previously, he reported on economics for the Wall Street Journal and was managing editor of Vedomosti, a Russian-language business daily.

Expensive neighborhood.
Photographer: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

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Being poor in the U.S. can be expensive. Judging from the latest inflation data, it’s becoming more so.

Overall, inflation isn’t much of a problem in the U.S. For the past several years, the Federal Reserve has been struggling to get its preferred measure of consumer-price inflation up to its target of 2 percent -- and many Fed officials think it could take a few more years to get there.