Inflation cooled in Could, new data showed Wednesday, delivering a welcome piece of reports simply hours earlier than the Federal Reserve is ready to make its newest announcement on rates of interest.
Shopper costs rose 3.3% from a yr earlier, slowing from April’s 3.4% price, in keeping with the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ newest Shopper Worth Index report launched Wednesday.
On a month-to-month foundation, costs had been flat, a slower tempo from April’s 0.3% achieve.
It’s the primary time since July 2022 that CPI didn’t rise on a month-to-month foundation.
Economists had been anticipating a 0.1% month-to-month enhance and an annual achieve of three.4%, in keeping with FactSet consensus estimates.
Serving to to gradual inflation in Could had been falling gasoline costs, which dropped 3.6% from April. They’re nonetheless up 2.2% for the yr. Grocery costs had been flat and total meals costs went up by 0.1%, lifted by a slight acceleration in inflation on the restaurant degree.
Nonetheless, shelter inflation greater than offset the decline in gasoline, rising 0.4% for the fourth month in a row, underscoring the pressure Americans are feeling from housing-related expenses.
Excluding gasoline and meals, classes that are typically risky, the intently watched “core” measure rose simply 0.2% for the month (its slowest tempo since October of final yr), and its annual price dropped to three.4%, setting a recent three-year low.