(MENAFN) According to data released on Tuesday, consumer inflation in the US saw an annual increase of 3.2 percent in February, with a monthly gain of 0.4 percent, surpassing market forecasts. The consumer price index (CPI), which gauges changes in the prices of goods and services from a consumer's standpoint, was anticipated to exhibit an annual rise of 3.1 percent following a 3.1 percent increase in January year-on-year.
Despite this uptick, the current figure marks a significant decrease from the 9.1 percent annual gain recorded in July 2022, which stood as the highest since November 1981. In February, the CPI experienced a 0.4 percent increase compared to the previous month, surpassing expectations for a 0.3 percent gain. This follows a 0.3 percent monthly increase noted in January.
The Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics highlighted that the rise in the CPI for February was primarily driven by increases in the index for shelter and gasoline, with these two components contributing to over sixty percent of the overall monthly increase in the index for all items.
Furthermore, the core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose by 0.4 percent in February from the previous month, surpassing estimates of 0.3 percent, after experiencing a similar 0.4 percent increase in January. Annually, the core CPI climbed by 3.8 percent in February, exceeding expectations of 3.7 percent, following a year-on-year gain of 3.9 percent in January.
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