PiCK
US February CPI up 2.4%…in line with market expectations
Summary
- The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) for February rose 2.4% year on year, matching economists’ forecasts.
- Core CPI rose 2.5% from a year earlier, in line with expectations, and increased 0.2% month on month.
- The latest CPI reflects only February price changes and did not incorporate the upswing in global oil prices after US and Israeli air strikes on Iran.
Forecast Trend Report by Period
The increase in the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) in February came in line with market expectations.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) under the US Department of Labor said on the 11th (local time) that last month’s CPI rose 2.4% year on year. The reading matched the consensus estimate (2.4%) compiled by Dow Jones. On a month-on-month basis, it rose 0.3%.
Core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 2.5% from a year earlier, in line with economists’ forecasts (2.5%). It increased 0.2% from the previous month.
US CPI inflation rose to 3.0% in September last year, reflecting factors including the impact of tariffs under the second Trump administration, before easing to 2.4% in January this year.
Meanwhile, the CPI released that day reflects price increases recorded in February. It did not capture the impact of rising global oil prices following the start of US and Israeli air strikes on Iran on the 28th of last month.
JOON HYOUNG LEE
gilson@bloomingbit.ioCrypto Journalist based in Seoul
