Economists expected a decline; inflation in the US increased unexpectedly

Consumer prices rose 3.2 percent in February compared to the same month last year, after 3.1 percent in January, the US Department of Labor announced in Washington on Tuesday.

Analysts on average had expected an unchanged rate of 3.1 percent. In a month-on-month comparison, consumer prices rose by 0.4 percent. This was expected.

Core inflation stood at 3.8 percent, after 3.9 percent in the previous month. However, economists had expected a sharper decline to 3.7 percent. Compared to the previous month, core consumer prices rose by 0.4 percent.

The core interest rate receives special attention from the US Federal Reserve Bank. According to experts, it reflects general price developments better than the overall tariff, because components that are sensitive to fluctuations such as energy and food are excluded.

The figures are of great importance for the monetary policy of the US Federal Reserve, which has kept its key interest rates stable in recent months. The financial markets largely expect interest rate cuts from June this year. Fed officials recently tempered expectations. They first want to wait and see how inflation develops. (sda/awp/dpa)