The consumer price index fell .2% last month, the Labor Department reported today. It was the first drop in prices since December.
The CPI in March was .4% below the CPI in March 2008, the first year-over-decline since August, 1955, according to the department's Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The CPI had risen .5% in February and .3% in January.
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The Labor Department attributed the March decline to falling energy prices. Excluding food and energy costs, the CPI increased .2% in March, the same rate as in January and February.
Energy prices fell 3% in March, compared with a 3.3% increase in February. Energy prices have fallen 23% in the last year.
Transportation prices fell 1.1% in March and fell 13% for the last year.
In March, food and beverage prices fell .1% and have increased 4.3% over the last year.
Housing prices were fell .1% and have increased 1.4% during the last year.
Medical care increased .2% last month and rose 2.8% in the last year. Education and communication prices increased .2% in March and have risen 3.6% during the past 12 months.
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