Inflation eased last month, even amid concerns about tariff-driven price increases.
The Consumer Price Index rose 2.3% over the prior year in April, a slowdown from March’s 2.4% and the lowest annual increase since February 2021.
Air fares, cell phones, and new and used cars were among the major categories that slowed in April. But some food — especially meat, milk, and eggs — medical care, and shelter costs marched higher.
Here’s what the latest CPI report means for your household.
After rising 0.5% in March, grocery prices were something of a mixed bag, slowing 0.4% in April overall.
Notable declines include hot dogs, breakfast cereal, and even eggs, which were down 12.7% compared to March. But they’re still a whopping 49% higher than a year ago.
A dozen large Grade A eggs, on average, cost $5.12 in April, down from $6.23 in March but far higher than the $2.86 average of a year ago.
Meat prices, especially beef, remain elevated: Ground beef is 10% higher than a year ago, and steaks are up 7%. According to the BLS, a pound of ground beef now averages $6.14.
The cost of eating out grew 0.4% from March and was 3.9% higher than a year ago.
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Medical services increased 0.5% from March and are 3.1% higher than a year ago. That category includes hospital services, which are 3.6% higher than a year ago, and nursing home care, which is up 4.6%.
Prescription drug prices surged 0.4% from March and are 2.3% higher than last April.
Health insurance rose 3.3% compared to April 2024 and was up 0.4% monthly.
The story of housing and transportation
Shelter costs remain the stickiest piece of the inflation picture, rising 0.3% last month. They’re up 4% from a year ago, the latest measure in a long and steep incline that started with the pandemic.
But there are some signs that housing costs are cooling this year. A surge in multifamily construction in recent years has helped keep asking rents relatively flat in much of the country for the past year, and home price appreciation is slowing from levels seen in recent years.
Car prices, especially used cars, also spiked during the pandemic, but President Trump’s tariffs have changed the equation. Used car prices slowed 0.5% from March and are just 1.5% higher than a year ago. New cars, meanwhile, were flat from March to April — a sign that auto dealers were shielding buyers from tariff price hikes.
There was good news at the gas pump.
The gasoline index inched down 0.1% in April, and was 11.8% lower than a year ago. As of May 13, the national average for gasoline was $3.16 per gallon, according to AAA data, down from $3.62 a year ago.
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Inflation remains above the Federal Reserve’s target of 2%. The major metric to watch, however, is President Trump’s on-again, off-again tariffs, whose effects may not be fully reflected in April’s inflation data.
Combined with overall economic uncertainty around the tariffs, the Fed is expected to keep interest rates on hold in the near term.
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