LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) -- The federal government shutdown delayed the monthly Consumer Price Index (CPI) report expected on Wednesday, clouding the picture for Michigan households already grappling with higher grocery bills

The CPI, typically released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, is a key gauge of inflation that guides everything from interest-rate expectations to cost-of-living adjustments.

Without the October update, retailers and families lose a data point on food-at-home prices, making it harder to plan budgets and assess whether checkout increases are easing or worsening.

Recent state-level figures show consumer prices up 2.9% year over year in August, with grocery prices up 2.7%, the largest non-pandemic increase since 2015. That backdrop means the missed CPI update lands at

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