CPI Rose 0.6% in March on Higher Prices for Energy and Transportation Services, R.J.S, MarketWatch 666 The consumer price index rose 0.6% in March, the largest monthly increase since August 2012, as higher prices for fuel, utilities, transportation services, financial services, and used vehicles were only slightly offset by lower prices for clothing and for communication commodities…the Consumer Price Index Summary from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that seasonally adjusted prices averaged 0.6% higher in March, after rising by 0.4% in February, 0.3% in January, 0.2% in December, 0.2% in November, 0.1% in October, 0.2% in September, 0.4% in August, by 0.5% in July and by 0.5% in June, but after falling by 0.1% last May, by
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CPI Rose 0.6% in March on Higher Prices for Energy and Transportation Services, R.J.S, MarketWatch 666
The consumer price index rose 0.6% in March, the largest monthly increase since August 2012, as higher prices for fuel, utilities, transportation services, financial services, and used vehicles were only slightly offset by lower prices for clothing and for communication commodities…the Consumer Price Index Summary from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that seasonally adjusted prices averaged 0.6% higher in March, after rising by 0.4% in February, 0.3% in January, 0.2% in December, 0.2% in November, 0.1% in October, 0.2% in September, 0.4% in August, by 0.5% in July and by 0.5% in June, but after falling by 0.1% last May, by 0.7% last April and by 0.3% in March of last year….the unadjusted CPI-U index, which was set with prices of the 1982 to 1984 period equal to 100, rose from 263.014 in February to 264.877 in March, which left it statistically 2.6198% higher than the 258.678 reading of March of last year, which is reported as a 2.6% year over year increase, up from the 1.7% year over year increase reported a month ago….with higher prices for energy a major factor in the overall index increase, seasonally adjusted core prices, which exclude food and energy, were only up by 0.3% for the month, as the unadjusted core price index rose from 270.696 to 271.713, which left the core index 1.6464% ahead of its year ago reading of 267.268, which is reported as a 1.6% year over year increase, up from the 1.3% year over year core price increase that was reported for February, but still little changed from the 1.6% the year over year core price increase that was reported for December of 2020 . . .
The volatile seasonally adjusted energy price index rose 5.0% in March, after rising by 3.9% in February, 3.5% in January, 2.6% in December, 0.7% in November, 0.6% in October, 1.4% in September, 0.9% in August, 2.1% in July, and by 4.4% in June, but after falling by 2.3% in May, by 9.5% in April, and by 5.8% last March, and hence is now 13.2% higher than in March a year ago…the price index for energy commodities was 8.9% higher in March, while the index for energy services was 0.6% higher, after rising 0.9% in February….the energy commodity index was up 8.9% on a 9.1% increase in the price of gasoline and a 3.2% increase in the index for fuel oil, while prices for other energy commodities, including propane, kerosene, and firewood, were on average 0.5% lower . . . within energy services, the price index for utility gas service rose 2.5% after rising 1.6% in February and is now 9.8% higher than it was a year ago, while the electricity price index was unchanged in March after rising 0.7% in February . . . energy commodities are now averaging 22.0% higher than their year ago levels, with gasoline price averaging 22.5% higher than they were a year ago, while the energy services price index is now up 4.1% from last March, as electricity prices are also 2.5% higher than a year ago…
The seasonally adjusted food price index rose 0.1% in March, after rising by 0.2% in February, 0.1% in January and 0.3% in December, after being unchanged in November, rising 0.2% in October, rising 0.1% in August and in September, after falling 0.3% last July, rising 0.5% last June, rising 0.7% last May and 1.4% last April, and by 0.3% last March, as the price index for food purchased for use at home was 0.1% higher in March, after rising 0.3% in February, while the index for food bought to eat away from home was also 0.1% higher, as average prices at fast food outlets rose 0.5% and prices at full service restaurants rose 0.2%, while food prices at employee sites and schools averaged 13.3% lower . . . notably, the price index for food at elementary and secondary schools was down 16.3% and is now down 43.5% from a year ago…
In the food at home categories, the price index for cereals and bakery products was 0.1% lower even as average bread prices rose 0.2%, as the price index for fresh biscuits, rolls, muffins fell 1.2%, the price index for crackers and bread and cracker products fell 1.2% and the price index for fresh sweetrolls, coffeecakes, doughnuts fell 1.0%….on the other hand, the price index for the meats, poultry, fish, and eggs food group was 0.1% higher, as the price index for poultry rose 0.9%, the price index for pork rose 1.0%, the price index for fresh fish and seafood rose 1.3%, and egg prices rose 2.0%…meanwhile, the seasonally adjusted price index for dairy products was 0.5% lower, as milk prices fell 0.5% and the price index for dairy products other than cheese and ice cream was 0.9% lower….however, the fruits and vegetables price index was 1.0% higher as the price index for fresh fruits rose 0.9%, the price index for fresh vegetables rose 1.4%, and the price index for dried beans, peas, and lentils rose 2.8%….meanwhile, the beverages price index was 0.2% lower as the price index for nonfrozen noncarbonated juices and drinks fell 1.8% and the price index for coffee fell 0.7% . . . lastly, the price index for the ‘other foods at home’ category was unchanged, as the price index for sugar and sweets rose 0.4% and the price index for snacks rose 0.6%, while the price index for fats and oils fell 0.4% and the price index for prepared salads fell 1.7%…the itemized list for price changes of over 100 separate food items is included at the beginning of Table 2 for this release, which also gives us a line item breakdown for prices of more than 200 CPI items overall…since last March, the only food line items showing a price change greater than 10% over the past year are beef roasts, which are 11.2% higher, and the index for pork roasts, steaks, and ribs, which has risen 10.5%…
Among the seasonally adjusted core components of the CPI, which rose 0.3% in March after rising 0.1% in February, being unchanged in January and December, after rising by 0.2% in November, by 0.1% in October, by 0.2% in September, by 0.3% in August, by 0.5% in July and by 0.2% in June, after falling by 0.1% in May, by 0.4% in April and being unchanged in March of last year, the composite price index of all goods less food and energy goods was 0.1% higher in March, while the more heavily weighted composite for all services less energy services was 0.4% higher….
Among the goods components, which will be used by the Bureau of Economic Analysis to adjust March retail sales for inflation in national accounts data, the price index for household furnishings and supplies was was 0.4% higher, as the price index for major appliances rose 1.9%, the price index for living room, kitchen, and dining room furniture rose 2.4%, and the price index for tools, hardware and supplies rose 1.6% . . . however, the apparel price index was 0.3% lower on a 1.7% decrease in the price index for men’s suits, sport coats, and outerwear, a 4.1% decrease in the price index for women’s suits and separates, a 5.6% decrease in the price index for girls’ apparel, and a 3.1% decrease in the price index for boys’ and girls’ footwear….meanwhile, the price index for transportation commodities other than fuel was 0.2% higher, as prices for new cars and trucks were unchanged, prices for used cars and trucks rose 0.5%, and the price index for vehicle parts and equipment other than tires was 2.4% higher… at the same time, the price index for medical care commodities 0.1% higher, as prescription drug prices were unchanged while nonprescription drug prices rose 0.2%…on the other hand, the recreational commodities index was 0.2% lower on a 0.6% decrease in TV prices, a 1.3% decrease in the price index for sporting goods, a 1.8% decrease in the price index for photographic equipment and supplies, and a 1.6% decrease in the price index for recreational books…in addition, the education and communication commodities index was 1.8% lower on a 2.3% decrease in the price index for educational books and supplies, a 2.0% decrease in the price index for computers, peripherals, and smart home assistants, and a 0.9% decrease in the price index for telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items….lastly, a separate price index for alcoholic beverages was 0.3% higher, while the price index for ‘other goods’ was up 0.2% on a 0.4% increase in the price index for miscellaneous personal goods and a 0.6% increase in cigarette prices…
Within core services, the price index for shelter was 0.3% higher as rents rose 0.2% and homeowner’s equivalent rent was 0.2% higher, and as prices for lodging away from home at hotels and motels rose 4.4%, while at the same time the shelter sub-index for water, sewers and trash collection rose 0.2% and other household operation costs were on average 0.1% higher . . . meanwhile, the price index for medical care services was 0.1% higher, as the price index for outpatient hospital services rose 0.7% and the price index for inpatient hospital services rose 0.5%….at the same time, the transportation services price index was 1.8% higher as car and truck rentals rose 11.7%, the price index for intracity mass transit rose 2.7%, and the price index for vehicle insurance rose 3.3%…in addition, the recreation services price index rose 0.8% as the index for admission to movies, theaters, and concerts rose 1.1% and the price index for admissions to sporting events rose 4.7%…. on the other hand, the index for education and communication services was unchaged as the price index for delivery services rose 1.0% while the price index for day care and preschool services fell 0.8% and the price index for wireless telephone services fell 0.3% . . . lastly, the index for other personal services was up 0.9% as the price index for checking accounts and other bank services rose 13.0% while the price index for haircuts was 0.4% higher…
Among core line items, the price index for telephone hardware, calculators, and other consumer information items, which is now down by 18.0% since last March, the price index for men’s suits, sport coats, and outerwear, which is also down 18.0% from a year ago, the price index for women’s dresses, which has fallen by 11.4% in the past year, the price index for admission to sporting events, which is still down by 11.9% from a year ago, and airline fares, which are still down by 15.1% since last March, have all seen prices drop by more than 10% over the past year, while the price index for car and truck rental, which has now risen 31.2% from a year ago, and the price index for laundry equipment, which is up 24.2% from last March, are the only core line items to have increased by a double digit magnitude over that span….