Consumer Prices Rose a Modest 0.2 Percent in April

(CN) — Consumer prices rose modestly in April as rising costs for gasoline and rentals were offset by a steadying of health-care prices, the Labor Department said Thursday.

In its monthly report, the department said the consumer price index increased 0.2 percent in April from the previous month.

Economists had forecast the CPI rebounding 0.3 percent in April.

The Index rose 2.5 percent compared to a year earlier, the biggest annual gain in 14 months.

Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices rose just 0.1 percent in April and 2.1 percent from a year earlier.

The report also says inflation has increased steadily since last summer, when it rose just 1.6 percent in June from a year earlier.