Some good news on the inflation front, but probably not good enough to make the Fed change its direction yet.

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) — the standard measure that is discussed — actually declined by 0.1% in December 2022 for a 6.5% year-over-year increase. That's down from the 7.1% year-over-year change in November. According to a number of sources, the drop was in line with consensus estimates.

Overall, that's an excellent sign, as an actual turning point to a drop in prices month over month rather than just a slowdown of increase. Digging in a bit, things are messier. The decrease came largely from energy costs falling by 4.5%, due to the falling price of gasoline. But food, which can't be ignored, was up 0.3% between November and December, and that becomes an immediate pain in the pockets of average consumers.