US inflation stays low in March

A sharp fall in the price of petrol helped to keep US consumer inflation well below the Federal Reserve's 2 per cent target in March. The Consumer Price Index rose 0.2 per cent last month, up from 0.1 per cent in February, according to the Labor Department. Petrol prices fell 1.7 per cent in March, helping to offset a 0.4 per cent increase in food prices driven by rises in the cost of meat, fish and eggs. March's increase means prices are now up 1.5 per cent from a year earlier. Low inflation has given the US central bank the leeway to carry out a massive stimulus programme aimed at stimulating growth in the economy. But the Fed has been scaling back some of that stimulus in recent months. Its bond-buying programme - which for most of last year was running at $85bn (£50bn) a month - has been cut by $10bn at the Fed's last three meetings so that it now stands at $55bn a month, according to a news agency.