--US consumer prices +0.3% in April; core rate +0.2%
--Ex-energy, US April consumer prices +0.2%; energy +1.8%
--US April CPI gasoline prices +5.0%; fuel oil -2.1%
--US April tobacco +4.0; food prices +0.1%
--US April new auto prices unchanged; airline fares -1.3%
--US April consumer shelter prices +0.3%; apparel -1.3%
--US April CPI +3.3% from year ago; core CPI +2.6%
--US real average weekly earnings in April -0.1%

By Andrew Williams
Washington, May 16 (BridgeNews) - A less-than-expected rise in energy and food prices helped contain inflation in the U.S. economy in April, as consumer prices rose 0.3%, the Labor Department said Wednesday. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, "core" consumer prices rose 0.2%. Analysts had expected the overall CPI to rise 0.4%, and the "core" CPI to post a 0.2% increase.
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The April rise in the CPI is more than the 0.1% rise posted the month before, while the increase in the core CPI matches the March advance. During the last 12 months, the CPI has moved up 3.3%, while the core CPI has risen 2.6%. For all of 2000, the CPI climbed 3.4% while the "core" CPI rose 2.6%. Economists and the Federal Reserve often strip out volatile food and energy costs to get a better reading on the underlying inflation rate.

LEADING THE WAY
Leading the April CPI increase was the first increase in energy prices in the last three months. Energy prices accelerated 1.8%, with gasoline prices up 5.0%, electricity costs rising 0.2%. However, natural gas prices dropped 1.6% and fuel oil prices tumbled 2.1%. Excluding energy, the CPI was up 0.2%.
Meanwhile, food prices rose only 0.1%, as beef prices continued to rise, climbing 0.9%. Fresh fruit costs gained 2.7%. However, fresh vegetables fell 2.0%, despite expectations by some analysts for an increase because of bad weather.
Excluding food and energy, the core rate of retail inflation was lifted by medical care, which rose 0.4%, but was partially offset by a 1.3% decline in apparel prices. Other key price changes of the core included:
--Shelter costs rose 0.3%;
--Tobacco prices rose 4.0%;
--Airline fares fell 1.3%;
--Automobile costs were unchanged, and
--Recreation costs rose 0.9%

WHAT WAS EXPECTED:
Analysts' estimates for the April CPI ranged between down 0.2 and up 0.6%, while the expectations for the core rate ranged between down 0.1% and up 0.4%, according to the BridgeNews survey.

OTHER DETAILS:
--The seasonally adjusted CPI-U rose to 176.8 in April, from 176.3 in March. The index was at 100 for the period 1982-1984. The unadjusted consumer price index rose to 176.9 in April from 176.2 the prior month. The US Treasury uses the unadjusted CPI-U to compute the inflation impact on inflation-adjusted securities.
--In a separate report, Labor said real average weekly earnings of U.S. non-farm workers fell 0.1% in April following a 0.7% increase the previous month. The drop reflected a 0.4% increase in hourly earnings, an unchanged rate in the average number of hours worked per week, and a 0.4% increase in the consumer price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers, which is called the CPI-W.