ISTANBUL

Annual consumer inflation in the US came in at 4.9% in April, slightly easing from 5% in March, according to official figures released Wednesday.

The consumer price index (CPI), which measures changes in the prices of goods and services from a consumer's perspective, also came below the market estimate of 5%.

The figure was the smallest 12-month increase since the period ending April 2021, and marked a sharp decline from last June's 9.1% yearly gain -- the largest since November 1981.

On a monthly basis, CPI rose 0.4% in April from the previous month, coming in line with the market expectation. The figure for March was unrevised at 0.1%.

"The increase in the gasoline index more than offset declines in other energy component indexes, and the energy index rose 0.6 percent in April," the Labor Department said in a statement.


Core CPI, which excludes food and energy, gained 0.4% in April from the previous month, also coming in line with the market estimates. The March reading was unrevised at 0.4%.

Annually, core CPI rose 5.5% in April, also in line with market expectations, after it rose 5.6% in March year-on-year.