US: CPI falls 0.3% in March; index excluding food and energy falls 0.1%

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) decreased 0.3 percent in March on a seasonally adjusted basis, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index rose 2.4 percent before seasonal adjustment.

Key findings

• The March decline was the first 1-month decrease in the seasonally adjusted all items index since February 2016. A decline in the gasoline index was the largest factor.
• The energy index declined 3.2 percent, with the gasoline index falling 6.2 percent, and other major energy component indexes decreasing as well. The food index rose 0.3 percent. The all items index rose 2.4 percent for the 12 months ending March, a smaller increase than the 2.7-percent rise for the period ending February. The index for all items less food and energy rose 2.0 percent over the last 12 months, the smallest 12-month increase since November 2015. The energy index rose 10.9 percent over the last year, while the food index increased 0.5 percent.