Consumer prices stayed flat in July except for gasoline

The consumer price index for the Midwest was unchanged in July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.

Despite price increases at the gasoline pump in the Kansas City area, the energy index for the Midwest as a whole dropped 0.7 percent, largely due to a 1.7 percent decline in motor fuel prices.

Meanwhile, the bureau reported that food prices in the Midwest rose 0.3 percent while the price index for all items minus food and energy was unchanged.

Over the last 12 months, the Midwest price index declined 0.5 percent. The drop was fueled by a 15.6 percent fall in energy costs. mostly due to a 23 percent plummet in motor fuel prices.

Food prices rose 1.4 percent from July a year ago, mostly because of a 3.2 percent increase in the cost of food away from home.

The price index for all items except food and energy rose 1.2 percent from July 2014 to July 2015, the bureau said.

This story was originally published August 19, 2015 at 9:33 AM with the headline "Consumer prices stayed flat in July except for gasoline."