By Rex Nutting
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. consumer prices decreased in May for the second straight month as gasoline prices fell, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The consumer price index fell a seasonally adjusted 0.2% in May after a 0.1% decline in April, the government said. Energy prices fell 2.9%, food prices were flat and shelter prices rose 0.1%. The core CPI - which excludes volatile food and energy prices in order to get a look at underlying inflation - rose 0.1%, just the second monthly increase this year. The report matched economists' expectations.
