In the US, the Fed’s gauge of rising inflation, the personal consumption expenditures was up 4.9%, similar to April of last year. PCE was up .2% in April, less than the .9% increase in March. They say, this might be a sign of slowing inflation. These numbers don’t include food and energy prices.
Biden is calling it “a sign of progress.”
The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge rose 4.9% in April from a year ago, a still-elevated level that nonetheless indicated that price pressures could be easing a bit, the Commerce Department reported Friday.
That increase in the core personal consumption expenditures price index was in line with expectations and reflected a slowing pace from the 5.2% reported in March. The number excludes volatile food and energy prices that have been a major contributor to inflation running around a 40-year peak.
While the lower level of inflation generated some relief in the White House, gas will be a factor again when the May numbers come out next month. Prices at the pump have jumped again in May, surging more than 11% from a month ago and 51% from this time last year, according to AAA.
In a statement, President Joe Biden noted April’s report was “a sign of progress, even as we have more work to do.”
