The annual inflation rate in the US slowed for a sixth consecutive month to 2.4% in September 2024, the lowest since February 2021, from 2.5% in August. However, figures came above forecasts of 2.3%.

A key measure of US inflation — the Consumer Price Index — slowed in July to an annualized pace of 2.9%, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. This is the first time inflation has risen by less than 3% since 2021 and comes in lower than analysts’ estimates.

U.S. consumer prices rose moderately in July and the annual increase in inflation slowed to below 3% for the first time in nearly 3-1/2 years, opening the door wider for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates next month.

The Consumer Price Index, a measurement of price changes for a commonly purchased basket of goods and services, briskly retreated from a 2.9% annual increase in July to 2.5% in August, marking the lowest annual increase since February 2021 and landing at a rate that matched the average seen in 2018.

Economists say consumers appear to be responding to steadily slower inflation, higher incomes, lower gas prices and a rising stock market. Inflation has tumbled from a peak of around 9 percent in June 2022 to 3.4 percent.