Economic Data for Wednesday, September 15, 1999
CPI for August = +0.3%
Core rate = +0.1%
stats.bls.gov
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI-U increased 0.3 percent in
August, the same as in July. Energy costs increased sharply for the
second consecutive month--up 2.7 percent in August--accounting for about two-thirds of the August advance in the overall CPI. The index for petroleum-based energy rose 5.4 percent in August, and the index for energy services increased 0.3 percent. For the second consecutive month in August, the food index increased 0.2 percent and the index for food at home, 0.1 percent. Excluding food and energy, the CPI-U rose 0.1 percent, following an increase of 0.2 percent in July. Downturns in the indexes for airline fares and cigarettes accounted for the smaller advance in the August all items less food and energy index.
During the first eight months of 1999, the CPI-U rose at a 2.6 percent seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR). This compares with an increase of 1.6 percent for all of 1998. The acceleration thus far in 1999 has been due to energy costs, which increased at a 15.4 percent annual rate in the first eight months of 1999 after declining 8.8 percent in all of 1998.
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