U.S. Consumer Prices Rise 0.4% in February

The prices paid by U.S. consumers last month frost 0.4%, the largest increase in fourth months as the cost of gasoline and airfare spiked, the Labor Department reported Wednesday.

The increase in Labor's consumer price index was the second in a row, following a revised 0.1% gain in January.

The so-called "core" CPI, which excludes volatile costs like energy and food, rose 0.3% during the month, the largest increase since September and also the second straight increase.

Analysts told Bloomberg News the figures confirmed some of the concern showed by the Federal Reserve Tuesday when it raised interest rates a quarter of a point.

In a year-over-year comparison, consumer prices are 3% higher than they were during February 2004.

Energy prices, which include the cost of fuels like diesel and gasoline, rose 2% in February – but are up 10.4% over the same month last year. Analysts told Bloomberg that trend is likely to continue with crude oil and motor fuel prices at or near all time highs.