WASHINGTON: A key indicator of US inflation edged down from a year ago in November, according to government data released Friday, in welcome news to households grappling with soaring costs although food prices remained elevated.
This extends a downward trend in recent months as officials try to cool the world’s biggest economy, though it is unlikely to bring quick reprieve from an aggressive campaign to rein in prices.
The US Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, rose 5.5 percent last month from November 2021, Commerce Department data showed.
This was slightly below October’s level but remains significantly higher than policymakers’ longer-term target of two percent inflation.
From October to November, the PCE price index increased 0.1 percent, boosted by food prices.
Meanwhile, personal income rose 0.4 percent from October to November, data showed.
And household spending, which has proven resilient in the face of decades-high inflation, jumped 0.1 percent over the same period.
Consumer prices have surged this year, exacerbated by supply chain snarls and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, leading the Fed to hike interest rates rapidly in hopes of easing demand.
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The central bank has raised the benchmark lending rate seven times this year, with higher borrowing rates already battering sectors such as real estate.
But consumer spending has been resilient and prices remain stubbornly high.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned last week there is still some way to go in the battle against inflation.
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