MW: U.S. consumer prices rise 0.4% on higher gas prices
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - With energy prices rising at the fastest rate in seven months, U.S. consumer prices increased a seasonally adjusted 0.4% in February, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. Energy prices increased 3.3% in February, the government said, including an 8.3% gain in gasoline prices. Food prices fell 0.1%, the first decline in nearly three years. Excluding food and energy prices, the core CPI increased 0.2% for the second month in a row, boosted by higher prices for new cars, clothes and cigarettes. The February inflation and core inflation figures were a tenth of a percentage point higher than expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch.
