Inflation fell to 2.4% in January in gauge favored by Fed, but core prices rose quickly
By
Joseph Lawler
February 29, 2024 8:32 am
Inflation fell two-tenths of a percentage point to a 2.4% rate for the year ending in January, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Thursday in an update to the personal consumption expenditures index, the lowest such rate since February 2021, just after President Joe Biden took office.
The drop in headline inflation is welcome news for both Biden and the Federal Reserve, which has been seeking additional evidence that its campaign to lower inflation is working. The Fed’s target is 2% inflation in the PCE index.
Some of the report’s details, though, were less favorable.
Most notably, core inflation, which strips out the volatile categories of food and inflation, fell only a tenth of a percentage point to 2.8% for the year. Core inflation was 0.4% just in the month of January, the fast such rate in a year, and well above the pace consistent with the Fed’s target.
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/economy/2894424/inflation-fell-to-2-4-in-january-in-gauge-favored-by-fed/