The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased a seasonally adjusted 0.2% for September, according to a Labor Department report (link opens as PDF) released today.
After edging up 0.1% in August, this month's top-level numbers exactly matched analysts' expectations.
Source: Labor Department
According to the report, about half of the index's increase was due to energy prices, which registered a steeper 0.8% rise in September. Excluding more volatile food and energy prices, the CPI rose just 0.1%, below market expectations of a core 0.2% increase.
Over the last 12 months, the CPI has headed 1.2% higher, the smallest 12-month increase since April. While the core index (less food and energy) is up 1.7%, energy prices have dropped off 3.1% since September 2012.
In a Federal Reserve statement released today, the Fed noted that, although inflation levels have remained below where it would like them to be, the Reserve expects inflation to pick up in the next couple of years and hit its target long-term goal of 2% annual growth.
