Consumer Prices Jump in May

Consumer prices soared to the highest level in six months in May, as Americans paid more for gasoline and energy, a government report said Friday.

The consumer price index rose 0.6 percent in May, the biggest hike since November and more than analysts had expected, the Labor Department said.

So-called core prices, which exclude volatile food and energy, were up 0.2 percent as expected, the Labor Department report showed.

A 5.7 percent spike in gasoline prices, the biggest rise since November, sent energy prices up 4.4 percent during the month. The increase in energy prices was also the biggest rise since November after holding steady in April.

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