April consumer inflation rose 0.4% in April, in line with expectations, and 3.2% year over year. This is a modest drop in the monthly increase from 0.5% in March, while the Y/Y number was an increase from 2.7% to 3.2%. The energy index posted another increase in April as the gasoline index continued to rise, the latter accounting for almost half of the seasonally adjusted all items increase. For those who eat in addition to use energy, the BLS had this to say: "The food index increased as well in April, though the 0.5 percent rise in the food at home index was the smallest increase this year." Still: "Within the food at home component, the indexes for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs, for dairy and related products, and for nonalcoholic beverages all posted notable increases, though the fresh vegetables index did decline following recent advances." Core CPI rose for 0.2%: the third such increase in 4 months. Overall, CPI continues to be far less than indicated by the MIT BPP.

From the report: