Washington — It’s not just egg prices that are rising.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.5% on a seasonally adjusted basis in January, following a 0.4% increase in December. According to the Bureau, the all items index increased 3% before seasonal adjustment over the past 12 months.

The report shows that the index for shelter rose 0.4% in January, accounting for nearly 30% of the monthly all items increase. The energy index rose 1.1% over the month, as the gasoline index increased 1.8%. The index for food also increased in January, rising 0.4% as the index for food at home rose 0.5% and the index for food away from home increased 0.2%.

Reaction to the report online was immediate.

CNBC reported that markets tumbled following the news with futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average sliding more than 400 points.

CNBC’s Jeff Cox noted that the report comes a day after “Fed Chair Jerome Powell indicated the central bank could be on hold for a while” with regard to interest rates. According to Cox, “Powell told members of the Senate Banking Committee that he thinks the Fed doesn’t need to be in a rush to lower rates as it evaluates progress on inflation and as President Donald Trump continues plans to levy tariffs against imports.”

Bloomberg Economist Tuan Nguyen, PhD, wrote, “The increase was broad-based, led by a rise in goods prices. That should serve as a stern warning against the current tariff policy, which could put even more pressure on goods prices. However, we remain cautious about overreacting to the January data, as several seasonal and one-time factors may have been at play.”

See also:

• Consumer Confidence continues ‘sideways’ movement with slight decline in January
• Home furnishings stores channel trails most sectors in Retail Monitor’s January report

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