Morningstar

Shutdown-Affected November CPI Rises 2.7%, Below Expectations

Analysts had said the government shutdown could distort the November readings on inflation.

Collage illustration of a basket filled with groceries, featuring a dollar icon and a magnifying glass.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the Consumer Price Index increased 2.7% in November from year-ago levels, down from 3.0% in September.

Year-over-year core CPI (which excludes volatile food and energy costs) rose 2.6%, down from a 3.0% rate in September. Economists had expected CPI would rise 3.1% on an annual rate in November both overall and excluding food and energy, according to FactSet.

As a result of the federal government shutdown, most inflation data was not collected for October. Economists cautioned that the November data could reflect distortions created by the shutdown.

The BLS reported that CPI rose 0.2% in November from September both overall and excluding food and energy. Because of the missing October data, economists had based forecasts on a two-month average. On that basis, the monthly CPI readings came in below consensus expectations for 0.25% overall and 0.3% excluding food and energy.

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