WASHINGTON: US consumer prices rebounded in April after dipping in March, driven by a surge in gasoline prices and an uptick in housing costs, but the Labor Department report Thursday was tamer than expected. Food prices also rose, as did medical services, but cell phone services—which had been blamed for the bafflingly low inflation last year—were flat after finally rising in March. The Consumer Price Index, which tracks costs for household goods and services, rose 0.2 percent compared to March, seasonally adjusted. However, excluding the volatile food and energy components, “core” CPI rose just 0.1 percent and was 2.1 percent higher than the same month of last year. They might possibly be cheered by one data point in the CPI report: the cost of whiskey at home fell 0.3 percent in April.

Source: Manila Times May 11, 2018 16:24 UTC