November inflation at 2.7%, lower than expected

By Andrew Rice
The Center Square

Consumer prices rose by 0.2% in the two month period between September and November.

In the past 12 months, overall prices rose by 2.7%, which marks a slowdown from 3% reported in September, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Due to the federal government shutdown, BLS did not collect survey data in October. Instead, BLS retroactively acquired nonsurvey data from October and resumed its data collection efforts on Nov. 14, after the government reopened.

The index for shelter rose by 0.2% and the energy index rose by 1.1% over the two month period ending in November. Food prices increased by 0.1% during the same two-month period.

The inflation index for energy prices over the past 12-months rose by 4.2%. Over the past 12 months, gasoline prices increased by 0.9%; fuel oil rose by 11.3%; natural gas rose by 9.1%; electricity increased by 6.9%.

Overall food prices increased by 2.6% over the last year with meats, poultry, fish and eggs rising by 4.87%; nonalcoholic beverages increased 4.3%; cereals and bakery products increased 1.9%; and fruit and vegetables rose 0.1%. Dairy and “related products” saw a decrease of 1.6% over the same 12-month period.

Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal, said inflation came in lower than expected in November.

“It’s hard to read too much into the data given how much the shutdown impacted data collection,” Long said in a social media post Thursday.

In an address to the nation Wednesday night, President Donald Trump said “inflation is stopped.”

Trump said if prices haven’t fallen, they will soon.

“Prices on electricity and everything else will fall dramatically,” Trump said.

In June 2022, the United States experienced a 40-year peak of inflation at 9.1%. It has fallen since then and remained around 3% over the last several months.