What the numbers say: The price of food is starting to go up again after a few months of normalcy. Overall inflation has eased over the past few months, but May saw the Consumer Price Index (CPI) of food rise 0.2%. This included food at home and food away from home. Relevance: The U.S. Labor Department released a report on inflation on Tuesday, highlighting the overall trend over the past seven months of certain items. Food was steady in March and April, meaning there was no rise in overall pricing. It isn't anywhere near what the increase was at the end of last year. Over the past year, prices have risen 6.7%, which is actually down from 7.7% in April. Other items: All items less food and energy, which is the CPI for a basket of goods that excludes food and energy items, also rose in May by 0.4%. Fuel and oil continue to trend downward, and the price of new vehicles also trended downward for the second straight month. This will likely lead to a pause in rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. |
