Midwest consumer prices down 0.5% in November

The Consumer Price Index for the Midwest dropped 0.5 percent in November, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday. Energy prices were down 4.8 percent and food dipped 0.4 percent. Excluding those two volatile sectors, the core price index was unchanged.

The energy index dropped a fifth consecutive month for the Midwest, led by an 8.7 percent drop in motor fuel prices. Two sectors that did go up were rent and health care costs.

Nationally, the Consumer Price Index was unchanged, and the core rate was up just 0.2 percent.

The Star

This story was originally published December 15, 2015 at 2:38 PM with the headline "Midwest consumer prices down 0.5% in November."