First the good news: Inflation slowed in April, The Wall Street Journalreports. Now the bad news: Prices are still up 8.3% compared to a year earlier.

That's close to the fastest pace in four decades as the economy continued to face upward price pressures, the newspaper explains. Prices have risen for groceries as well as dining out, airline travel and other services.

"Inflation is no longer just contained to the supply chain—these pressures are actually becoming more broad-based," said Aneta Markowska, chief financial economist at Jefferies LLC.

Inflation is a major reason consumer confidence is down now, despite positive signs in the U.S. economy, Christopher Thornberg of Beacon Economics said at AWB's Spring Meeting last week.