Prices that consumers pay for a wide variety of goods and services increased at a slightly faster than expected pace in September, keeping inflation in the spotlight of policy makers.
The consumer price index, a closely followed inflation gauge, increased 0.4% on the month and 3.7% from a year ago, according to a Labor Department report Thursday. That compared to respective Dow Jones estimates of 0.3% and 3.6%.
Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core CPI increased 0.3% on the month and 4.1% on a 12-month basis, both exactly in line with expectations. Policymakers place more weight on the core numbers as they tend to be better predictors of long-term trends.
This is breaking news. Please check back here for updates.
