The consumer price index rose 0.1% from June to July and stood 3.4% above its year-ago level, down from 3.5% the prior month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. Inflation continues to exceed wage growth, which the BLS said was running at 3.2% annually, with average hourly earnings slipping 0.2% from a year earlier.
Consumer Prices Rose 0.1% in July as Annual Inflation Eased Slightly to 3.4%
The consumer price index rose 0.1% from June to July and stood 3.4% above its year-ago level, down from 3.5% the prior month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. Inflation continues to exceed wage growth, which the BLS said was running at 3.2% annually, with average hourly earnings slipping 0.2% from a year earlier.
Energy prices were identified as the primary contributor to inflation's rise this year, according to the report. Gasoline prices fell 2.9% during the month of July, though Brent crude oil reached $90 per barrel and U.S. crude rose to nearly $84 per barrel on Wednesday morning. The national average regular gasoline price also rose on Wednesday to $4.03 per gallon.
The consumer price index had reached 4.2% in May, which the article attributes to rising crude oil prices associated with an ongoing war with Iran. The report released Wednesday did not indicate that conflict had ended.
Shelter costs rose 0.1% in July and accounted for roughly two-thirds of the monthly overall increase, the BLS said. Food prices also rose 0.1% over the month, with the food-away-from-home index — which covers restaurant meals and takeaway food — rising 0.3%.
Categories showing price increases in July included medical care, airline fares, communication, education, and recreation. Motor vehicle insurance was among the indexes that decreased, according to the BLS.
Electricity prices were nearly flat, rising 0.1% month over month.
Inflation has exceeded wage growth for four consecutive months, according to Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union.
The Federal Reserve has held interest rates unchanged since the United States and Israel launched what the article describes as the Iran war, even as central banks in Europe and Japan have raised rates, according to the source. The Fed's next rate decision is scheduled for mid-September, with additional jobs and CPI data for August still to come before that meeting.
- The source does not provide an official Federal Reserve statement or response to calls for a rate hike.
- The source does not specify the date, parties, or circumstances of what it calls the 'war with Iran,' nor does it cite any official government or military sources for that characterization.
- The source does not explain why average hourly earnings slipped 0.2% year-over-year while the BLS wage growth figure is simultaneously cited as 3.2%; the relationship between these two figures is not clarified.
- The source does not identify which European central banks or the Bank of Japan raised rates, or by how much.
- The source text supplied appears truncated; some material may be missing.