Prices paid by US consumers jumped 7% in December from a year earlier, the highest inflation rate since 1982 and the latest evidence that rising costs for food, gas, rent, and other necessities are heightening the financial pressures on America's households, reports the AP. The Wall Street Journal reports this is the third consecutive month where inflation has topped 6%. What's known as the core price index, which doesn't take into account food and energy, was up 5.5% in December over the prior year. That tops November's 4.9% and marks the highest rate since 1991.