The Commerce Department’s personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge, accelerated slightly last month from one year earlier, the Associated Press reports.
The PCE was up 2.7% in August from a year ago, a bit higher than July’s 2.6% year-over-year increase and the most since February.
So-called “core” PCE inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, saw a 2.9% increase from August 2024 — the same as July and in line with forecasters’ expectations.
While inflation has come down since the Fed raised its benchmark interest rate 11 times in 2022-23, annual price gains remain stubbornly above the central bank’s 2% target.
