Summary
- The 0.3% increase in the Consumer Price Index fell slightly below the consensus estimate, so no shock to the markets.
- Core inflation rose at an annual rate of 2.1%, showing that inflation exists outside of rising gasoline prices.
- Good news for holders of TIPS: June principal balances will rise by 0.53%, following increases of 0.56% in June and 0.43% in May.
The April inflation report again pointed to energy costs as the primary driver of U.S. inflation. The gasoline index rose 5.7% for the month, and is now up 3.1% over the last 12 months, reversing a long trend of declining prices.
Read my full analysis on SeekingAlpha.com
Also, I’ve updated my Tracking Inflation and I Bonds page with the new numbers.
And I updated the TIPS Vs. Nominals page with results for the 5-year TIPS that matured in April. That TIPS under-performed a nominal Treasury by 0.34% a year.
And here are the new June Inflation Indexes for all TIPS.
Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities 
NRN. Thanks for sharing the benefits of your TIPS studies, they form part of the basic data points I try to track.