Annual inflation cooled to 2.4% in January, an eight-month low
By Alicia Wallace, CNN
(CNN) — The annual rate of inflation slowed to an eight-month low last month, new data showed Friday.
Consumer prices rose 2.4% for the 12 months ending in January, a sharp cooling from the 2.7% rate notched in December, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest Consumer Price Index.
On a monthly basis, prices rose a better-than-expected 0.2%, a deceleration from December.
Economists had forecast a 0.3% monthly increase, which would bring the annual rate to 2.5%, an expectedly cooler reading that benefited from “base effects,” or comparisons to last year when inflation was running higher.
For similar reasons, the core CPI gauge – a closely watched measurement of underlying inflation that excludes volatile food and energy prices – also saw its annual rate of inflation ease.
Core CPI slowed to 2.5%, which marks its lowest rate since March 2021, right before the pandemic-era inflationary spike.
This story is developing and will be updated.
The-CNN-Wire
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