Economic Trends

CPI: Consumer Inflation Cooled to 4% in May

The index for shelter was the largest contributor to the monthly all items increase, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

June 13, 2023

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Inflation

The Consumer Price Index in May rose just 4% over the same period a year earlier, the slowest annual rate of inflation in more than two years, according to information released June 13 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.1% in May on a seasonally adjusted basis, after increasing 0.4 percent in April. In April, the CPI rose at what was then its slowest annual rate in two years when it reached 4.9%.

The index for shelter was the largest contributor to the monthly all items increase, followed by an increase in the index for used cars and trucks.

The food index increased 0.2% in May after being unchanged in the previous two months. The index for food at home rose 0.1% over the month, while the index for “food away from home” rose 0.5%.

The energy index declined% in May as the major energy component indexes fell, according to BLS data.

The all-items other than food and energy index rose 5.3% over the last 12 months. The energy index decreased 11.7% for the 12 months ending in May, while the food index increased 6.7% over the past year.

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