US consumer prices likely to remain stable in December

The US consumer price inflation is expected to have remained the same for the second consecutive time in December. Throughout the country, gasoline pump prices for all grades and formulations dropped by 5.1% to $2.144 per gallon in December, surpassing the government forecast of a seasonal fall of 2%. The decline of 3.7% in motor fuel prices will lower the CPI energy gauge by 2.2%, as compared with the decline of 1.3% in November.

Consumer food prices in the US are expected to have remained steady in December. The core CPI is expected to have risen by 0.2%. The core CPI in December is likely to have been helped by acceleration of shelter and medical care services costs, along with improvement in apparel and used vehicle prices.

"Our forecast would place the CPI 0.8% above the figure recorded at the end of 2014. The year-to-year growth of the core sub-index, meanwhile, is expected to edge one tick higher to 2.1%", says Societe Generale.