Consumer Price Index (CPI) - All Urban Consumers (Chart)

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased
0.2 percent in March, before seasonal adjustment, the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The index has
decreased 0.4 percent over the last year, the first 12 month decline since
August 1955.

Consumer Price Index - All Urban Consumers 415

Subscribe to All American Investor via Email

Report and Tables

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI-U decreased 0.1 percent in
March after rising 0.4 percent in February. The decrease was due to a
downturn in the energy index, which declined 3.0 percent in March after
rising 3.3 percent the previous month. All the energy indexes decreased,
particularly the indexes for fuel oil, natural gas, and motor fuel. The
food index declined 0.1 percent for the second straight month to virtually
the same level as October 2008. The food at home index declined 0.4
percent, the second straight such decrease, as the index for dairy and
related products continued to decline.

The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.2 percent
for the third month in a row. An 11.0 percent increase in the index for
tobacco and smoking products accounted for over sixty percent of the March
rise, with a 0.6 percent increase in the new vehicles index also
contributing. In contrast, the indexes for lodging away from home, used
cars and trucks, and airline fares continued to decline. The index for
all items less food and energy has risen 1.8 percent over the past year.

Bob DeMarco is a citizen journalist and twenty year Wall Street veteran. Bob has written more than 500 articles with more than 11,000 links to his work on the Internet. Content from All American Investor has been syndicated on Reuters, the Wall Street Journal, Fox News, Pluck, Blog Critics, and a growing list of newspaper websites. Bob is actively seeking syndication and writing assignments.

More from All American Investor