Shelter and gasoline were responsible for a large part of the monthly rise in prices. Photo: Brandon Bell / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFPThe US central bank has raised interest rates to the highest level in 23 years as it attempts to bring inflation back down firmly to its long-term target of two percent.
This was slightly above expectations of a 3.4 percent rise, according to a survey of economists conducted by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. The indexes for shelter and gasoline together contributed"over half" of the monthly increase, according to the Labor Department.The so-called"core" inflation index rose 0.4 percent in March from a month earlier, according to the Labor Department.The risk of cutting too soon was that"inflation does move up," he said, adding it"would be quite disruptive if we were to have to then come back in" to raise rates.