December 16, 2011
According to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics’ reports on the consumer price, U.S. import/export price and producer price indexes, the Consumer Price Index was unchanged in November and has grown at a 0.8 percent annualized rate over the last three months. Energy prices fell 1.6 percent last month, dropping below prices in March of this year. Core inflation rose 0.2 percent, only slightly faster than the 0.1 percent reported in October (0.17 percent compared with 0.14 percent.) Over the last six months, core prices grew at a 2.2 percent annualized rate.
There continues to be weak inflationary pressures in the economy, with a rebounding dollar that is helping keep import prices low and a decrease in the real hourly wage.
For an in-depth analysis, check out the latest Prices Byte.
