U.S. CONSUMER PRICES UP 0.2% IN MAY

WASHINGTON» U.S. consumer prices rose 0.2 percent in May, with surging gasoline costs driving much of the increase.

The Labor Department said Thursday that the consumer price index climbed 2.8 percent last month from a year earlier, putting inflation on its fastest annual pace since February 2012. But core prices — which exclude the volatile food and energy categories — have risen a milder 2.2 percent over the past 12 months.

Inflation remains relatively tame, although it has picked up sharply this year, in large part due to more expensive oil.