Consumer price growth slowing down, says Commerce Department

The Commerce Department on Friday reported that consumer prices, excluding food and energy, had risen 0.3 percent from January to February. The prices had previously climbed 0.6 percent between December and January. However, consumer prices are still up 5 percent compared to twelve months ago. The department also reported that consumer spending rose only slightly in February, slowing down from January’s rate.

What does this mean? Friday’s report hints that inflation could be easing. The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates nine times since March of last year while trying to control inflation. Two U.S. banks collapsed this month, which could factor into the Federal Reserve’s policymaking going forward.

Dig deeper: Read Carolina Lumetta and Leo Briceno’s report in The Stew about what went wrong at Silicon Valley Bank, one of the banks that collapsed this month.