Little Sign of Inflation in Consumer Prices

Washington, DC, June 17, 2012--Consumer prices fell in May for the second straight month as gasoline prices declined, the Labor Department said.

The consumer price index fell a seasonally adjusted 0.2% in May after a 0.1% decline in April, the government said. Energy prices fell 2.9%, food prices were flat and shelter prices rose 0.1%.

The core CPI rose 0.1%, just the second monthly increase this year.

The report matched economists' expectations.

In the past year, the CPI is up 2%, while the core CPI is up 0.9%, matching April for the lowest year-on-year increase in 44 years.

Energy prices were the big story in May, falling 2.9% on a seasonally adjusted basis. Gasoline prices fell 5.2%, seasonally adjusted. In the past year, energy prices are up 15%.

Excluding energy, consumer prices rose 0.1% in May. Most major categories of consumer spending showed flat or slightly rising prices.

Shelter prices, which account for nearly a third of the CPI's market basket, rose 0.1% in May. Rents were flat, as was ownership equivalent rent. Lodging away from home jumped 2.5%.