US inflation edges down on energy, food costlier

US consumer prices rose at an annual rate of 8.3pc in August, a tick lower than the prior month as food prices hitting new highs partially offset easing energy costs.

The increase last month compared with an 8.5pc gain in the 12 months through July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. It marked a second month of slowing from this year's peak at 9.1pc in June, which was the highest inflation in four decades. Still, the August number was higher than most economists' forecasts.

The energy index rose by 23.8pc in September, down from the 32.9pc gain in the prior 12-month period. The food index rose by 11.4pc over the past year, the largest 12-month increase since the period ending May 1979.

The Federal Reserve has embarked on a course of steep rate increases and is expected to hike its target rate by 75 basis points next week, its third such consecutive increase. It has vowed to quash inflation, even while warning that would come with "some pain" for consumers and businesses.

All items less food and energy — so-called core inflation — rose by 6.3pc in August from a year earlier, up from 5.9pc in the prior two months and a sign of ongoing inflationary pressures.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the consumer price index rose 0.1pc in August after being unchanged in July. All items less food and energy rose 0.6pc in August after a 0.3pc gain in July and a 0.7pc gain in June. The energy index fell by 5pc in August after a 4.6pc decline in July, while the gasoline index fell by 10.6pc in August after a 7.7pc decline in July and an 11.2pc gain in June.

By Robert Willis