The Numbers

The Bureau of Economic Analysis released the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation, the core personal consumption expenditures price index, on Friday morning.

The core index rose 0.3% in February, equal to economists’ consensus estimate and down from the 0.4% increase in January. The index, which excludes food and energy components, was up 2.8% from a year earlier, according to the BEA, matching the January year-over-year change.

The data comes as this year’s economic indicators show a resilient economy, especially the labor market, with hotter-than-expected inflation. The central bank is taking a wait-and-see approach to lowering interest rates as it assesses whether progress on reducing inflation to its 2% annual target has stalled.