Consumer prices rose a scant 0.1 percent in August from July and were up a modest 1.5 percent since August 2012, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday morning.
The latest sign that inflation remains in check came just as Federal Reserve policymakers were gathering in Washington, D.C., for a two-day meeting. On Morning Edition, NPR's John Ydstie reported about why the central bank is expected to start trimming its effort to give the economy a lift by purchasing billions of dollars worth of government bonds and mortgage-backed securities.
The low inflation report would seem to fit with the notion that the Fed has accomplished what it set out to do — give the economy enough of a boost to keep it moving ahead without triggering an uptick in prices. If so, that would support the case that the Fed can begin to scale back its "quantitative easing."
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