Infla­tion rose slight­ly to 2.5% in Feb­ru­ary in gauge pre­ferred by Fed

Infla­tion ticked up to a 2.5% annu­al rate in Feb­ru­ary, as mea­sured by the gauge favored by the Fed­er­al Reserve, ris­ing one-tenth of a per­cent­age point from the pre­vi­ous read­ing.
The uptick in the per­son­al con­sump­tion expen­di­tures price index report­ed Fri­day morn­ing by the Bureau of Eco­nom­ic Analy­sis is unwel­come news for Pres­i­dent Biden and the Fed­er­al Reserve, which has been seek­ing more evi­dence that its cam­paign to low­er infla­tion by rais­ing inter­est rates is work­ing. The Fed’s tar­get is 2% infla­tion in the PCE index.
From Jan­u­ary to Feb­ru­ary, infla­tion rose 0.3%, slight­ly less than expect­ed.
Core PCE infla­tion, a mea­sure of infla­tion that strips out volatile ener­gy and food prices, remained at a 2.8% year-over-year rate.
This lat­est re …