For the first time since August, US inflation slowed last month.
New York (CNN Business) For the first time since August, US inflation slowed down last month. Prices continued to rise, albeit more slowly than in prior months.
The Consumer Price Index increased 8.3% in the year ending in April, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, somewhat higher than economists had projected. It was down from the 8.5 percent recorded in March, which was the highest level in almost 40 years.
When more volatile product categories like food and energy are excluded, the CPI for the same period was 6.2 percent, down from 6.5 percent in March.
According to the consumer price index, the overall year-over-year price of consumer goods and services is now 8.3 percent, down 0.2 percent from March's 40-year high (CPI). Some experts had predicted a slightly slower deceleration: Bloomberg polled 52 experts ahead of the Labor Department's report release, and the median expected inflation rate was 8.1 percent.
Despite widespread concern, Mahedy believes a recession in 2022 is "very unlikely" barring unforeseen events. According to his projections, consumer demand for goods and services remains very strong and is not expected to decline for the rest of 2022.