April 18, 2001 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Consumer prices up 0.1 percent in March

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.1 percent in March, following increases of 0.6 and 0.3 percent in the first two months of the year.

[Chart data—TXT]

The energy index declined for the second consecutive month, down 2.1 percent in March. The index for energy services fell 0.6 percent, as a 2.1-percent decline in the index for natural gas more than offset a 0.5-percent rise in the index for electricity. The index for petroleum-based energy declined 3.7 percent.

The food index, which increased 0.5 percent in February, rose 0.2 percent in March. The index for fruits and vegetables, which rose 2.6 percent in February, was virtually unchanged in March. Excluding food and energy, the CPI-U rose 0.2 percent in March, following increases of 0.3 percent in January and February. 

For the 12-month period ended in March, the CPI-U increased 2.9 percent.

These data are a product of the BLS Consumer Price Index program. Find out more in Consumer Price Indexes, March 2001, news release USDL 01-100.