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US Core Inflation Rate at 3.2% in December
The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) reading for December showed that overall inflation was in line with expectations, while core inflation slowed.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Wednesday, January 15, that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.4% (seasonally adjusted) on a monthly basis, slightly above the 0.3% estimate of economists polled by Dow Jones.
However, the annualized headline inflation rate was in line with expectations in December at 2.9%.
Excluding food and energy, the core CPI rose 3.2% on a yearly basis in December, slightly lower than in November and slightly better than the 3.3% forecast.
The core CPI rose 0.2% on a monthly basis, also below the 0.3% forecast.
Much of the upward movement in the CPI came from a 2.6% increase in energy prices for the month, driven by a 4.4% rise in gasoline, which accounted for about 40% of the index’s increase, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Food prices also rose 0.3% for the month.
On a year-over-year basis, food prices rose 2.5% in 2024 while energy prices fell 0.5%.
U.S. inflation accelerates to 2.9% in December, as expected, from 2.7% in November
On a monthly basis, inflation is 0.4%, but that’s a faster pace than November’s 0.3%
