Consumer Price Index Unchanged in February

The consumer price index was unchanged in February, the Labor Department said Thursday.

It was the first time the CPI had not increased since a decline in March 2009, and followed a 0.2% gain in January.

The core CPI, which excludes food and energy, rose 0.1%, capping the smallest year-over-year gain since 2004.

Economists had forecast an increase of 0.1% for both the CPI and the core rate, Bloomberg reported.

Energy prices fell 0.5% in February.

The CPI is the government’s broadest gauge of costs for goods and services. Almost 60% of the CPI covers prices consumers pay for services.

If consumer prices are climbing, it could reflect an increase in demand for consumer goods, which increases the demand for trucking services.