Article written by Jeff Cox, via https://www.cnbc.com on 10 May 2023
A widely followed measure of inflation rose in April, though the pace of the annual increase provided some hope that the cost of living will head lower later this year.
The monthly gain represented a step down from previous months’ increases but was still indicative that a key inflation driver is rising.
Food prices, though, were flat while the energy index rose 0.6%, boosted by a 3% gain in gasoline.
Of the six grocery store indexes the Bureau of Labor Statistics uses to compute food prices, four showed declines.
For workers, real average hourly earnings, adjusted for inflation, rose 0.1% for the month but were still down 0.5% from a year ago, the BLS said in a separate report.