(RTTNews) - Consumer prices rose at their fastest pace in three months in April, according to a report from the Department of Labor. The report also showed that core prices rose more than expected, raising concerns about the pace of inflation.

The Labor Department said that its consumer price index rose 0.6 percent in April following a 0.4 percent increase in March. The increase by the index was the biggest since a 0.7 percent increase in January, although it still came in line with economist estimates.

The acceleration in the pace of price growth compared to the previous month came as energy prices surged up 3.9 percent in April after rising 1.3 percent in March. The increase in energy prices also contributed to a 2.4 percent increase in transportation prices.

The report also showed some growth in apparel and medical care prices, which rose 0.6 percent and 0.4 percent respectively.

At the same time, food prices were unchanged in April, as a 0.2 percent decline in the index for food at home was offset by a 0.2 percent increase in the index for food away from home.

As mentioned above, the Labor Department also said that the core consumer price index, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 0.3 percent for the second consecutive month. Economists had expected a more modest increase of about 0.2 percent.

On Tuesday, a separate report from the Labor Department showed that wholesale prices rose 0.9 percent in April due in large part to a sharp rise in energy prices. The increase came in slightly above economist estimates of an increase of 0.8 percent.

The report also showed that core whole prices edged up by 0.1 percent in April, matching the increase seen in March. The increase came in slightly below economist estimates of an increase of 0.2 percent.

Economic reports have attracted a lot attention recently, as the Federal Reserve said last week that future interest rate decisions would be heavily dependent on the economic outlook implied by incoming data.

The Fed is scheduled to make its next decision on interest rates after a two-day meeting ending June 29. There is a lot of uncertainty about what the Fed will do after raising rates by a quarter point at the sixteen previous meetings.
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