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Energy prices fell 3.5 percent from the previous month, the biggest drop since Feb. 2016, as gasoline prices plunged 7.5 percent. Food costs rose 0.4 percent, the most since May 2014, amid the biggest increase in full-service restaurant prices since 2011.
The report showed used-car prices fell 0.2 percent, the first decline in three months and following two increases of more than 2 percent. New car prices were unchanged for a second month. Apparel prices were unchanged in December during the crucial holiday-shopping season, reflecting a rise in women’s clothing costs and a decline in men’s wear.
The CPI is the broadest of three price gauges from the Labor Department because it includes all goods and services. About 60 percent of the index covers the prices that consumers pay for services ranging from medical visits to airline fares, movie tickets and rents. Labor Department economic releases are proceeding as scheduled, as the agency isn’t part of the partial federal- government shutdown.
This article provided by Bloomberg News.