The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers increased 0.3% in August on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 0.5% in July, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday.
Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 5.3% before seasonal adjustment. The indices for gasoline, household furnishings and operations, food and shelter all rose in August and contributed to the monthly all items seasonally adjusted increase.
The energy index increased 2.0%, mainly because of a 2.8% increase in the gasoline index. The index for food rose 0.4%, with the indexes for food at home and food away from home increasing 0.4% each.
LESS FOOD AND ENERGY
The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.1% in August, its smallest increase since February 2021. Along with the indexes for household operations and shelter, the indices for new vehicles, recreation and medical care also rose in August.
The indices for airline fares, used cars and trucks and
motor vehicle insurance all declined over the month.
INDEX UP OVER TIME
The all items index rose 5.3% for the 12 months ended August, a smaller increase than the 5.4% rise for the period ending July. The index for all items less food and energy rose 4.0% over the last 12 months, also a smaller increase than the period ending July.
The energy index rose 25.0% over the last 12 months, and the food index increased 3.7%; both were larger than the increases for the 12-month period ending July.
FOOD INDEX UP
The food index increased 0.4% in August after larger increases in recent months. The food at home index increased 0.4% over the month as four of the six major grocery store food group indexes rose.
The index for nonalcoholic beverages increased 1.0% in August, its third straight monthly increase.
The index for meats, poultry, fish and eggs rose 0.7% over the month as the beef index rose 1.7%. The index for other food at home rose 0.6% in August after increasing 0.8% in July.
The index for fruits and vegetables rose 0.2% in August after declining in July.
The index for dairy and related products declined in August, falling 1.0% after rising in each of the previous four months.
The index for cereals and bakery products was unchanged after increasing 1.2% in July.
The food at home index rose 3.0% over the past 12 months. Five of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased over the period. The largest was the index for meats, poultry, fish and eggs, which increased 8.0% as the index for beef rose 12.2%.
CATTLE, BEEF RECAP
The USDA reported formula and contract base prices for live FOB steers and heifers this week ranged from $122.43 to $127.40 per cwt, compared with last week’s weekly range of $127.40 to $128.11. FOB dressed steers and heifers went for $192.44 to $203.38 per cwt, versus $202.27 to $203.18.
The USDA choice cutout Tuesday was down $3.04 per cwt at $322.89, while select was down $1.54 at $290.62. The choice/select spread narrowed to $32.27 from $33.77 with 100 loads of fabricated product and 36 loads of trimmings and grinds sold into the spot market.
The USDA reported Tuesday that basis bids for corn from livestock feeding operations in the Southern Plains were unchanged at $1.75 to $1.95 a bushel over the Dec futures and for southwest Kansas were unchanged at $0.40 over Dec, which settled at $5.20 1/4 a bushel, up $0.07.
The CME Feeder Cattle Index for the seven days ended Friday was $155.09 per cwt up $0.09. This compares with Monday’s Sep contract settlement of $152.20 per cwt, down $2.05.