By Amara Omeokwe

U.S. consumer prices ticked higher at the end of 2020, as Americans contended with higher gasoline and food costs along with a rise in coronavirus cases across the country.

The consumer-price index -- which measures what consumers pay for everyday items including food, clothing and recreational activities -- increased a seasonally adjusted 0.4% in December compared with November, the Labor Department said Wednesday.

Gasoline prices rose 8.4% over the month, accounting for more than 60% of the overall increase in prices, according to the Labor Department.

In the year ended December, prices were up 1.4%, on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, capping a year that saw muted inflation amid an economic downturn caused by the pandemic. The increase was the smallest yearly rise since 2015, the Labor Department said.

Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal were expecting a 0.4% rise in consumer prices over the month and a 1.3% increase over the year.

Excluding the often-volatile categories of food and energy, so-called core prices were up 0.1% in December versus November and rose 1.6% from the year prior, matching economists' expectations.

The overall index on a monthly basis has risen in six of the past seven months. While gains slowed in the fall and into the winter, prices continued a rebound from early on in the pandemic, when they fell as much as 0.8%.

After falling in November, grocery prices rose 0.4% last month, amid renewed state and local restrictions on businesses and activity aimed at combating a resurgence in coronavirus cases. Prices for apparel also rose strongly over the month.

Economists expect the U.S. economic recovery from the pandemic to pick up steam in the second half of this year. In a Journal survey of economists last month, forecasters on average projected the consumer-price index in June 2021 will be 2.4% higher than the same month in 2020.

Federal Reserve officials have signaled plans to keep interest rates low as the recovery continues, even if inflation reaches their 2% target. Fed officials last March cut their short-term interest rate to near zero as part of efforts to bolster the economy, and have since pledged a higher bar to raise rates.

Write to Amara Omeokwe at amara.omeokwe@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

01-13-21 0922ET