--US consumer prices +0.3% in February; core rate +0.3%
--Ex-energy, US February consumer prices +0.3%; energy -0.2%
--US February CPI gasoline prices +1.2%; fuel oil -2.9%
--US February natural gas prices -2.4%
--US February tobacco +1.0%; food prices +0.5%; air fares +1.3%
--US February new auto prices -0.3%; prescription drugs +0.8%
--US February consumer shelter prices +0.4%; apparel +0.8%
--US February CPI +3.5% vs. year ago; core CPI +2.7% vs. year ago
--US real average weekly earnings in February -0.1%

By Simon Kennedy
Washington, March 21 (BridgeNews) - Increases in the prices of tobacco, air fares, clothing and prescription drugs offset falling natural gas and other energy prices to leave the U.S. consumer price index up 0.3% in February, the Labor Department said Wednesday. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, "core" consumer prices also rose 0.3%. Analysts had expected both the overall CPI and the "core" rate to rise 0.2%.
* * * The February rise in the CPI is half the 0.6% rise posted the month before, while the increase in the "core" CPI matches the 0.3% January advance.
Lifting retail prices in February were a 0.5% increase in food prices, a 0.4% increase in shelter costs, a 0.8% jump in apparel and a 1.0% climb in tobacco. Medical care costs rose 0.5% as prescription drug prices shot up 0.8%, their biggest spike since June 1998, Labor said.
Meanwhile, airline fares leaped 1.5%, their steepest rise since August.
Offsetting those gains, energy prices fell 0.2%, also the largest drop since August, as natural gas prices tumbled 2.4%--the biggest drop since December 1999--and fuel oil prices were down 2.9%. However, gasoline prices increased 1.2% last month.
Excluding energy, overall consumer prices rose 0.3%.
Prices for new autos fell 0.3% in February.
During the last 12 months, the overall CPI has moved up 3.5%, while the core CPI has risen 2.7%.
While slightly above expectations, the CPI rise alongside a well-behaved producer price index Friday indicate inflation remains under control. The Federal Reserve said Tuesday in its statement explaining its 50-basis-point cut in the federal funds rate that the risk of an economic slowdown continues to outweigh the threat of inflation.
WHAT WAS EXPECTED:
Estimates for the February CPI ranged between down 0.1% and up 0.2%, while the expectations for the core rate ranged from unchanged to up 0.2% according to the BridgeNews survey.
OTHER DETAILS:
--The seasonally adjusted CPI-U rose to 176.2 in February, from 175.7 in January. The index was at 100 for the period 1982-1984. The unadjusted consumer price index rose to 175.8 in February from 175.1 the prior month. The U.S.
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 February, matching the revised 0.1% decrease the previous month. The drop reflected a 0.5% increase in average hourly earnings, a 0.3% decrease in the average number of hours worked per week, and a 0.3% increase in the consumer price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W).