The Fed’s preferred inflation gauge rose 5.4% in February, the highest since 1983

The Federal Reserve’s favorite inflation measure showed intensifying price pressures in February, rising to its highest annual level since 1983, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.

Excluding food and energy prices, the personal consumption expenditures price index increased 5.4% from the same period in 2021, the biggest jump going back to April 1983.

Including gas and groceries, the headline PCE measure jumped 6.4%, the fastest pace since January 1982.

The core PCE increase actually was a touch lower than the 5.5% Dow Jones estimate. On a monthly basis, the gauge was up 0.4%, in line with estimates.

Surging prices dented consumer spending, which rose just 0.2% for the month, below the 0.5% estimate. Disposable personal income increased 0.4%, a touch below the 0.5% expectation, while real disposable income fell 0.2%. Savings nudged higher to $1.15 trillion, or a rate of 6.3%.

In other economic news Thursday morning, the Labor Department reported that initial jobless claims totaled…