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Below is a brief excerpt from a complimentary research note written by our Consumables analysts Howard Penney and Daniel Biolsi. We are pleased to announce our new Sector Pro Product Consumables Pro. Click HERE to learn more. |
The CPI increased 2.6% in the year ended March, a steep acceleration from 1.7% in February.
The CPI rose a seasonally adjusted 0.6% from February. The March CPI for food and beverages increased 3.4%, a 10bps deceleration from February.
Food at home CPI increased 3.3% but decelerated 30bps from February. Food away from home CPI increased 3.7%, flat from February.
The differential between food at home and away from home widened an additional 20bps to -0.4%, as seen in the chart below. The increase for alcoholic beverages remained flat sequentially at 2.0% in March.
Inflationary pressures from higher row crop prices will increase this year. In the near term, the CPI for food is decelerating against large comparisons last year.
Stimulus checks could have an insulating effect on consumers’ food budgets.
