Consumer Price Index Rises on Higher Gasoline Prices

The consumer price index rose 0.5% in June on higher gasoline prices, the Labor Department said Tuesday.

The government’s main inflation gauge rose by the most in four months after a 0.1% rise in May, Labor said. The core CPI rate, which excludes food and energy, rose 0.2%.

Economists had forecast a 0.3% rise in the CPI, Bloomberg News reported.

Gasoline prices increased by the most in four months and accounted for about two-thirds of the gain in CPI, Bloomberg reported.

Almost 60% of the CPI covers prices consumers pay for services. Climbing consumer prices could reflect an increase in demand for consumer goods, which increases demand for trucking services.