Price growth continued to cool in January, but not as much as hoped for – By Rob Wile (NBC News) / Feb 12, 2024
Still, consumers appear to be adjusting to a new normal of higher prices, including for fast food and other goods and services.
U.S. price growth cooled in January, slowing from 3.4% to 3.1% on a 12-month basis, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday.
Excluding food and gas prices, “core” price growth was flat at 3.9% compared with December.
Yet while price growth continued to drift downward last month, the January data missed expectations for a more robust slowdown: Ahead of the report, economists surveyed were expecting a reading of 2.9%. They also expected a lower reading for the “core” reading, at 3.7%.
“The final mile towards the Fed’s 2% target was always going to be slow, erratic, and frustrating,” wrote Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, in a note to clients following the report’s release. “Today’s data is not what markets or the Fed would have liked to see, but it’s important not to overreact and jump to the assumption that an inflationary resurgence is developing.”
