The Labor
Department reported on Wednesday the U.S. consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2
per cent m-o-m in August, the same pace as in
the previous month.
Over the last
12 months, the CPI surged by 2.5 per cent y-o-y, decelerating from an unrevised increase of 2.9 per cent y-o-y reported for the
period ending in July. This represented the weakest
12-month rise since February 2021
(+1.7 per cent).
Economists had forecast
the U.S. CPI to advance 0.2 per cent m-o-m and 2.6 per cent y-o-y.
According to
the report, the index for shelter
climbed 0.5 per cent m-o-m in August, being the main contributor to the monthly gain in
the index for all items. In addition, the index for food edged up 0.1 per
cent m-o-m. Meanwhile, the energy index declined 0.8 per cent m-o-m.
The core CPI,
excluding volatile food and fuel costs, increased 0.3 per cent m-o-m in August after an unrevised 0.2 per cent m-o-m gain in the previous month. This
was the strongest monthly increase in core CPI in four months.
In the 12
months through August, the core CPI soared by 3.2 per cent, at a similar pace
as in the 12-month period ending in July.
Economists
had predicted the core CPI to rise by 0.2 per cent m-o-m and 3.2 per cent y-o-y
in August.