Surging inflation has eased in recent months, but more evidence is needed to show that price increases are coming down in the long term, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday. (Photo by Yuki IWAMURA / AFP) (Photo by YUKI IWAMURA/AFP via Getty Images)
Prices rose half a percent in January, according to the latest consumer price index. That is up from a 0.1 percent decline in December, and five times the 0.1 percent increase in November.
The monthly uptick was in line with expectation, though the year-over-year rate came in higher than expected 6.4 percent, a marginal drop from a 6.5 percent rate in December.
Shelter (i.e. housing) contributed the largest share to the monthly increase, rising 0.7 percent.
Energy costs were also up across the board. The price of piped gas shot up 6.7 percent, while energy overall was up 2 percent after two straight months of declines.
Food prices, meanwhile, were up 0.5 percent. That is up from 0.4 percent in December, but still low relative to the last six months.
Used car prices also continued their steady decline, dropping 1.7 percent month-over-month and 11.6 percent year-over-year.
Despite the month-over-month drop, the annual rate has slowed for seven straight months.
DoorDash is getting into the advertising business and will list restaurant ads on the platform. Restaurants can compete for ad space through a bidding system, but DoorDash will only be paid if orders are placed at the advertised business.
It was a chaotic few days for Southwest Airlines customers as the airline canceled nearly 2,000 flights since Saturday, leaving thousands of passengers and flight crews stranded. Southwest blamed it on a combination of bad weather, air traffic control, and a staffing shortage. For more on this, David Shepardson, correspondent at Reuters, joined Cheddar’s Opening Bell.
Energy company Chevron has set a goal to reduce its operational carbon footprint to net zero by 2050. However, the company has not committed to reducing emissions on its gas and oil products.
