US February PCE Inflation Rises 2.8% Year-on-Year, Matches Expectations

Core PCE Rises 3.0% Year-on-Year
Inflation Deceleration Continues

The U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index for February, a key indicator the Federal Reserve (Fed) uses to guide its monetary policy decisions, was in line with forecasts.

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced on April 9 (local time) that the PCE price index for February rose by 0.4% from the previous month and by 2.8% compared to the same month last year. Both figures matched the expert forecasts compiled by Dow Jones.

The core PCE price index, which excludes energy and food, increased by 3.0% year-on-year and by 0.4% month-on-month. These results were also in line with expert expectations.

The core PCE inflation rate fell to as low as 2.6% in April last year, but after resuming its upward trend, it has not shown a clear deceleration.

The PCE price index measures the prices U.S. residents pay for goods and services. The Fed uses the PCE as a reference to assess whether it is meeting its monetary policy goal of a '2% inflation rate.'

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