The Labor Department reported on Wednesday the U.S. consumer price index
(CPI) edged up 0.1 percent m-o-m in March, following an unrevised 0.4 percent m-o-m gain in the previous month. That marked the weakest
monthly rise in headline CPI in three months.
Over the last 12 months, the CPI jumped 5.0 percent y-o-y, easing from
an unrevised climb of 6.0 percent y-o-y reported for the period ending in February.
That marked the smallest 12-month gain since May 2021 (+5.0 percent).
Economists had foreseen the U.S. CPI to increase by 0.2 percent m-o-m and
5.2 percent y-o-y in the 12-month period.
According to the report, the March m-o-m advance in all items index was primarily
due to a rise in the index for shelter (+0.6 percent m-o-m), which, however,
was offset by a decline in the energy index (-3.5 percent m-o-m). Meanwhile, the
index for food (0.0 percent m-o-m) was unchanged in March.
Meanwhile, the core CPI excluding volatile food and fuel costs went up
0.4 percent m-o-m in March after an unrevised 0.5 percent m-o-m increase in the previous month.
In the 12 months through March, the core CPI surged 5.6 percent, following
an unrevised 5.5 percent jump for the 12 months ending February. That represented
the first acceleration in core CPI in six months.
Economists had predicted the core CPI to rise by 0.4
percent m-o-m and 5.6 percent y-o-y last month.