United States: Inflation stabilizes in December from the prior month
Latest reading: Consumer prices increased 2.7% on a year-on-year basis in December, stable from the prior month’s reading. December’s figure was in line with market expectations but still above the Fed’s 2.0% target.
Relative to the previous month’s figures, there were higher price pressures for housing (+3.2% on a year-on-year basis vs +3.0% in November) and food (+3.1% vs +2.6% in November). In contrast, there were milder price pressures for transportation (+0.3% vs +1.5% in November) and energy (+2.0% vs +4.1% in November).
Meanwhile, core consumer prices rose 2.6% in annual terms in December, stable from the previous month’s reading.
Finally, consumer prices were up 0.31% in December in month-on-month terms, following a 0.20% increase in the previous month.