Consumer prices rose sharply in September.
The U.S. Labor Department said on Wednesday that the consumer price index rose 0.6% in September from August, driven by rising gasoline prices. The overall level of consumer prices for the whole year increased by 3.7%.
Core prices, a measure that excludes food and energy prices, rose 0.3% in September. Compared with the same period last year, core prices increased 2.6%. This means core inflation fell from 2.5% last month.
Economists had previously predicted that the CPI would increase by 0.6% quarterly and 3.7% annually. Core prices are expected to rise 0.2% this month, having risen 5.2% in the past 12 months.
Natural gas prices rose 9.1% in September, and the Labor Department said natural gas accounted for more than half of the overall monthly increase. The energy index rose 5.2% this month after rising 2.1% in August. Energy prices are up 20.4% this year.
There’s some good news for grocery store shoppers. The domestic food index fell 0.1%. The price of food outside increased by 0.2%.
After falling by 0.2% in August, electricity prices rose by 0.2% in September. Previously, it grew 0.1% in July and fell 1.0% in June. Electricity is up 4.4% this year.
After being flat in August, clothing prices rose 0.3% in September, rose 0.1% in July and fell 0.6% in June. Since the beginning of this year, clothing prices have increased by 3.4%.
House prices rose 0.4% in September after rising 0.3% in August, bringing the annual increase to 3.2%. Rents increased 0.2%. Restaurant and motel prices rose 2.0% in September, following a 2.4% increase in August.
The price of medical services increased by 0.3%, an increase of 2.5% compared with the same period last year. Healthcare products fell 0.7%. These were down 3.3% from a year ago. Prescription drug prices fell 1.2% this month after remaining flat the previous month. That’s down 4.5% from a year ago. Over-the-counter drug prices rose 1.3% after falling 1.0% the previous month. This year, they are down 0.9%.
Prices of major home appliances were flat in September after rising 1.4% in August. Compared with the same period last year, the prices of major home appliances fell by 2.3%. Furniture prices fell 0.8% in September, following a 0.9% decline in August. That’s down 2.4% from a year ago.
New car and truck prices rose 0.2% from August. Compared with a year ago, this was an increase of 0.6%. Used car and truck prices rose 0.7% after rising 0.4% the previous month. But compared with September last year, it dropped 1.5%.