By Keith Burbank. Bay City News.
Inflation in the Bay Area slowed by half a percentage point between June and August, but was up 5.7 percent from a year earlier, according to data released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The data reflect inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index for Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin counties.
Nationally, inflation rose 8.3 percent from a year earlier, higher than expected. The better-than-expected results may prompt the Federal Reserve, the nation's central bank, to raise a key interest rate to curb rising prices. That could cause a recession.
At the regional level, inflation rose 8.1 percent year-over-year in the western U.S.
The two-month drop in prices in the Central Bay Area was driven largely by lower gasoline prices, Bureau of Labor Statistics economist David Kong said Wednesday.
But energy prices are very volatile and the drop may not be a trend, Kong said.
Kong also noted that rents for residential properties in the central Bay Area increased less than rents nationwide.
Central Bay Area rents increased 3.5 percent year over year compared to 7.8 percent nationally.
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