The US Fed got some bad news on the economic home-front today : U.S. consumer prices were up more than expected in August, lifting the year-over-year inflation rate to the highest level in three years.
The Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% in August from July, seasonally adjusted. That was double the 0.2% rise that economists had expected in a Bloomberg News survey. Measured from a year earlier the CPI was up 3.8% in August, the biggest year-over-year gain since September 2008 -- just before inflation pressures eased as the economy crumbled.
Price gains last month were “broad-based, with continuing increases in the indexes for gasoline, food, shelter and apparel,” the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its monthly report. Food prices overall were up 0.5% last month after a 0.4% rise in July. Energy costs climbed 1.2% in August, though that slowed from a 2.8% jump in July.
Apparel costs were up 1.1% last month, used-car prices jumped 0.9% and medical-care services rose 0.3%. Higher rental costs also are biting, as more Americans stay in apartments rather than buy homes. The BLS' rental-cost index rose 0.4% in August, its biggest gain since June 2008.
The “core” CPI, excluding food and energy prices, rose 0.2% last month from the previous month, in line with economists’ forecasts. But that was a slight acceleration from July, and lifted the year-over-year core inflation rate to 2.0% -- the highest since November 2008.
For more: USA: Inflation: Consumer prices up 3.8% from a year ago, biggest rise since 2008 - latimes.com
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