US inflation eases on falling energy price
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WASHINGTON, Nov 15 AFP
November 16 2012, 01:12AM
US consumer prices have risen for a third straight month in October but at a slower pace than recent months as energy prices ease, new government data shows.
The Labor Department reported on Thursday that its consumer price index edged up 0.1 per cent from September, in line with analyst estimates.
The CPI had climbed 0.6 per cent in September and August on the back of a sharp rise in energy prices.
But in October energy prices fell 0.2 per cent, led by declines in petrol and natural gas prices.
Food prices rose 0.2 per cent, with the numbers indicating more consumers were eating at home.
Shelter prices, which include the price a homeowner would pay to rent his or her home in a competitive market, increased 0.3 per cent, their largest increase since September 2011.
Shelter increases accounted for more than half the rise in the CPI, the department said.
Excluding food and energy prices, core inflation rose 0.2 per cent.
On a 12-month basis, consumer prices were up 2.2 per cent from October 2011, their highest level since April, compared with 2.0 per cent in September, and core CPI was unchanged at 2.0 per cent.
The kept the inflation rate hovering around the Federal Reserve's 2.0 per cent target considered acceptable for price stability.
