WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure, rose 2.6 percent in December compared with a year ago, as inflation seems to be picking up in recent months, the Commerce Department reported on Friday.

The latest figure follows a rise from 2.1 percent year-on-year in September to 2.3 percent in October, and then to 2.4 percent in November, according to the department's Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).

The PCE gauge takes into account how consumers change their behavior in light of higher prices, and is a broader measure of consumer behavior than the consumer price index (CPI).

The so-called core PCE price index, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, rose 2.8 percent in December from a year ago, the same with October and November. The latest data is still above the Fed's inflation target of 2 percent.

The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday left the target range for the federal funds rate unchanged at 4.25 percent to 4.5 percent, as recent data showed inflation is picking up.

At a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Fed Chair Jerome Powell noted that inflation "has eased significantly" over the past two years but "remains somewhat elevated" relative to the central bank's 2-percent longer-run goal.

"With our policy stance significantly less restrictive than it had been, and the economy remaining strong, we do not need to be in a hurry to adjust our policy stance," he said.

U.S. real gross domestic product (GDP) in the fourth quarter of 2024 grew at an annual rate of 2.3 percent, much slower than the 3.1 percent in the third quarter, the U.S. Commerce Department reported in the advance estimate released on Thursday.

The estimate also showed that real GDP increased by 2.8 percent for the whole year, down 0.1 percentage point from 2023.

When asked about Trump administration's new policies, Powell said the Fed is "very much in the mode of waiting to see" what policies are enacted. "We don't know what will happen with tariffs, with immigration, with fiscal policy, and with regulatory policy," said Powell. Enditem

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