Inflation Accelerated Last Year, but Jump Is Unlikely to Deter Fed

NEWS ALERT
from The Wall Street Journal
Jan. 16, 2008
The consumer price index rose 0.3% in December, the Labor Department said, as higher energy, food and medical bills took a toll on consumers. The core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, advanced 0.2%. Consumer prices soared at their fastest rate in almost two decades last year, rising 4.1% from a year earlier. Underlying prices crept 2.4% higher for 2007, suggesting some spillover from food and energy. Still, the inflation data aren't alarming enough to prevent the Fed from carrying out a fourth straight interest-rate reduction later this month amid signs that the housing slump has spread to the broader economy.