WASHINGTON, April 16 (UPI) -- The Labor Department on Tuesday reported that the all-urban Consumer Price Index, the most widely followed gauge of inflation at the retail level, rose in March for the third consecutive month, lifted by rising energy costs.
The government agency said the CPI rose 0.3 percent in March after rising 0.2 percent in February.
Excluding the often-volatile food and energy sectors, the so-called core CPI rose 0.1 percent after rising 0.3 percent a month earlier.
Economists on Wall Street were expecting the overall CPI to rise 0.5 percent while the core rate was expected to rise 0.2 percent.
The CPI is the government's broadest gauge of costs for goods and services. About 55 percent of the CPI covers prices consumers pay for services, ranging from medical visits to airline fares and movie tickets. Goods, including food, clothing, autos and appliances, make up the rest.
The latest report showed that so far this year, the CPI is running at a 3 percent annual pace, compared with a 3.5 percent clip in the same period last year.
Core inflation is running at a 2.1 percent rate of increase, down from 3.3 percent during the first three months of last year.
The Labor Department said energy prices, which account for about 1-10th of the index, rose 3.8 percent in March after falling 0.8 percent in February. Gasoline prices surged 8.0 percent, the most since September.
The report showed that transportation costs jumped 1.2 percent, the most since September, boosted by the higher gasoline costs.
Auto prices fell 0.3 percent in March while air fares rose 0.5 percent.
Clothing prices posted their biggest increase since August 1998, jumping 1.2 percent during the month.
Food prices, which account for about a fifth of the index, rose 0.2 percent in March, matching February's increase.
Housing costs, which include some energy costs and account for one-third of the index, rose 0.1 percent in March.
Medical care costs rose 0.4 percent after posting a 0.3 percent increase a month earlier.
