May CPI Rises 0.7%

The consumer price index rose 0.7% in May, the Labor Department said Friday.

The gains were led by record-high gasoline prices. The core CPI rate excluding food and energy rose 0.1%, Labor said.

The overall increase was higher than the 0.6% forecast by economists, Bloomberg reported.
 
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.