President Joe Biden's first trip to celebrate a long-sought congressional victory on infrastructure was clouded by new data showing inflation rose to a level not seen for more than 30 years. Biden, who ran on his ability to whip COVID-19 and revive the economy that the pandemic left in tatters, now faces rising political pressure over shortages of goods and rising prices as society comes back to life.

"Consumer prices remain too high," Biden said at the Port of Baltimore. "We still face challenges we have to tackle head on."

The remarks followed hours after the Labor Department reported that U.S. consumer prices accelerated 6.2% in the 12 months through October, the largest year-on-year jump since November 1990. read more

Broad-based gains from pork chops to gasoline, sports tickets and health insurance suggested the issue was not a one-off, as the White House has largely maintained was the case through 2021.

Biden described reversing inflation as "a top priority for me."

The trip would have been more of a victory lap under different circumstances. Lawmakers on Friday passed a $1 trillion infrastructure package that Biden chaperoned after months of torturous negotiations.