I agree. That phrasing always gives me a moment of "9.1%? Is that vs. last month or last June?" before it kicks in and I realize it's YTD phrased in as sensational a way possible.
I think it’s year over year (same date as last year) , not ytd (since January 1st)
Why would CNBC write a headline that clearly doesn't make sense? Would people not understand if they just added the word "to" to the headline? Or does it just sound more alarmist this way? It just makes me think that part of the reason why people don't understand inflation is because the reporting is of poor quality.
the monthly change should be reported instead of the annual
Monthly is harder to measure because consumer preferences and behavior change from month to month, based on eg weather and holidays