U.S. consumer prices rose 0.1% last month, as a drop in grocery prices offset higher energy costs.
Excluding volatile food and energy prices, core consumer inflation also increased 0.1% for March, the smallest gain since August, according to figures released Thursday by the U.S. Labor Department
Over the past year, overall consumer prices stateside are up just 0.9% and core inflation 2.2%
In December, the Federal Reserve raised the short-term rate it controls for the first time since 2006. The central bank was widely expected to raise rates several more times this year. But policymakers have proven reluctant to move quickly, given tame inflation rates and signs of weakness in the U.S. and world economies.
Grocery prices subsided 0.5% in March, with cereal prices down 1.1%, the steepest slide since February 2006. Clothing prices dropped 1.1%, the most since September 1998.
Energy prices climbed 0.9%, with gasoline prices surging 2.2%
Figures also show the U.S. economy slowed at the end of 2015, growing at a lacklustre 1.4% annual rate from October through December. Many economists believe it decelerated further in the first quarter to an annual growth rate of around 1%.
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