All items less food and energy:

Inflation and Housing:
The overall index for items excluding food and energy increased by 0.2% in June.
The cost of housing, represented by the shelter index, rose by 0.4% in June.
Rent increased by 0.5%, and owners’ equivalent rent (for homeowners) increased by 0.4%.
However, the cost of lodging away from home decreased by 2.0% in June.
Factors driving the increase:
- The rising cost of housing played a significant role in the overall increase in prices. (+7.8%)
- Other factors that contributed to the increase include motor vehicle insurance (+1.7%), apparel (+0.3%), recreation, and personal care.
Declining indexes:
- Some indexes showed declines in June, such as airline fares (-8.1%), communication (-0.5%), and household furnishings and operations (-0.1%).
- The index for new vehicles remained unchanged.
Medical care:
- The medical care index remained unchanged in June, with physicians’ services increasing by 0.7% and hospital services increasing by 0.4%.
- The cost of prescription drugs, however, did not change.
Inflation over the past year:
- Over the past 12 months, the overall index excluding food and energy rose by 4.8%.
- The shelter index increased by 7.8%, contributing significantly to the overall increase.
- Other notable increases include motor vehicle insurance (+16.9%), recreation (+4.3%), household furnishings and operations (+3.6%), and new vehicles (+4.1%).
- AKA it is still entrenched where folks spend the most money!!!

Food:

Food prices:
- The overall food index increased by 0.1% in June.
- Prices for food at home remained unchanged after a 0.1% increase in May.
- Within the grocery store food groups, fruits and vegetables increased by 0.8%, while cereals and bakery products rose by 0.1%.
- However, prices for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs decreased by 0.4%, primarily due to a sharp decline in egg prices (-7.3%).
- Other food items at home decreased by 0.2%, with dairy and related products falling by 0.3% and nonalcoholic beverages declining by 0.1%.
Food away from home:
- Prices for food away from home increased by 0.4% in June.
- Both full-service meals (+0.3%) and limited-service meals (+0.4%) experienced price increases.
Food Inflation over the past year:
- Food prices at home rose by 4.7% over the last 12 months.
- Cereals and bakery products saw the highest increase at 8.8% during this period.
- The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs declined by 0.2%.
- Other grocery store food groups showed increases ranging from 2.7% (dairy and related products) to 7.6% (nonalcoholic beverages).
- Prices for food away from home rose by 7.7% over the past year, with full-service meals increasing by 6.2% and limited-service meals by 7.8%.

Energy prices in June:
- The energy index increased by 0.6% in June, recovering from a 3.6% decrease in May.
- Gasoline prices increased by 1.0% in June after a significant 5.6% decrease in the previous month. (Before seasonal adjustment, gasoline prices rose by 0.7% in June.)
Other energy components:
- Electricity prices increased by 0.9% in June after declining for the past three months.
- Natural gas prices decreased by 1.7% in June, marking the fifth consecutive monthly decrease.
- Fuel oil prices also declined, falling by 0.4% in June.
Energy prices over the past year:
- The energy index fell by 16.7% over the last 12 months.
- Gasoline prices decreased by 26.5% during this period.
- Natural gas prices fell by 18.6%, and fuel oil prices dropped by 36.6%.
- However, electricity prices rose by 5.4% over the past year.

Despite a 3.0% increase in the overall index, excluding food and energy, inflation remains persistent as it rose by 4.8% over the past 12 months.
While Corporate Media celebrates the headline, inflation is still growing and showing no signs of slowing!