U.S. Consumer Prices Climb More Than Expected In January

(RTTNews) - Consumer prices in the U.S. increased by more than expected in the month of January, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Wednesday.

The Labor Department said its consumer price index advanced by 0.5 percent in January after climbing by 0.4 percent in December. Economists had expected consumer prices to rise by 0.3 percent.

The report also said the annual rate of consumer price growth accelerated to 3.0 percent in January from 2.9 percent in December, while economists had expected the pace of growth to remain unchanged.

Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices rose by 0.4 percent in January after inching up by 0.2 percent in December. Core prices were expected to increase by 0.3 percent.

The annual rate of core consumer price growth also ticked up to 3.3 percent in January from 3.2 percent in December. Economists had expected the pace of growth to slow to 3.1 percent.