The Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% in September on a seasonally adjusted basis, after increasing 0.6% in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 3.7% before seasonal adjustment, unchanged from the prior month.
Prices for all items less food and energy, the “core CPI,” rose 0.3% in September, the same increase as in August.
The index for shelter was the largest contributor to the monthly all items increase, accounting for over half of the increase. An increase in the gasoline index was also a major contributor to the all items monthly rise. The shelter index increased 0.6% in September, after rising 0.3% the previous month.
The food index increased 0.2% in September, as it did in the previous two months. The index for food at home edged up 0.1% over the month, after rising 0.2% in August. Three of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased over the month. The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs rose 0.5% in September as the index for pork increased 1.6%. The food away from home index rose 0.4% in September.
The energy index rose 1.5% in September after increasing 5.6% in August. The gasoline index increased 2.1% in September, following a 10.6% increase in the previous month. The fuel oil index (not seasonally adjusted) rose 8.5% in September.
Read the BLS release.
