WASHINGTON — For recession-weary Americans cutting back on household expenses, Wednesday's Labor Department report on the Consumer Price Index offers a few hints.
Excluding the volatile food and energy sectors, so-called "core" prices rose 0.1 percent in August and 1.4 percent in the past year — the smallest increase since February 2004.
But health care and education costs continued to outpace inflation, as they have for years.
The cost of medical care increased 3.3 percent in the past year, as the price of hospital services jumped 6.5 percent.
Education costs, which include tuition and child care, rose 5.4 percent in the past year. The price of textbooks and supplies rose 6.8 percent.
Some other details:
Bargain carbs, pricey proteins, cheap produce
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• 0.1 percent: August drop in cereal and bakery product prices.
• 0.4 percent: August increase in prices for meats, poultry, fish and eggs.
• 0.7 percent: Decline in fruit and vegetable prices for August.
Eating at home
• 1.6 percent: Drop in price for "food at home" since August 2008.
• 3.0 percent: Increase in price for "food away from home" since August 2008.
More expensive in August
• 0.4 percent: August increase in prices for nonalcoholic beverages.
• 0.4 percent: August increase in prices for tenants' and household insurance.
• 0.8 percent: August increase in prices for water, sewer and trash collection services.
What got cheaper?
• 0.2 percent: August drop in prices for footwear.
• 0.1 percent: August drop in prices for car parts, equipment.
• 2.8 percent: August drop in prices for personal computers and peripheral equipment.