US Consumer Prices Increased Significantly in February

Washington - U.S. consumer prices increased in February amid sticky rental housing costs, but economists are divided on whether rising inflation will be enough to push the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates again next week after the failure of two regional banks.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.4% last month after accelerating 0.5% in January, the Labor Department said on Tuesday. That lowered the year-