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US prices didn’t rise last month for the first time since November
Prices in the US didn’t rise in May, lending a welcome reprieve to cost-wary Americans and helping to bring inflation even closer to normal levels. The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index — a closely watched inflation gauge that the Federal Reserve uses for its 2% target — was unchanged from April and slowed to 2.6% for the 12 months ended in May from 2.7% the month before, according to Commerce Department data released Friday. It’s the first time since November that prices didn’t increase on a monthly basis. Cheaper prices at the pump certainly helped (energy prices were down 2.1% for the month) ... (full story)