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Consumer prices rose a bit last month, but inflation still seems to be in check as the price cars, clothing, and hotels dropped.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.2 percent last month, according to the Labor Department, and that was mostly due to higher fuel prices.

With energy and food prices excluded, the core CPI stayed unchanged for the third consecutive month. Over the course of the past 12 months, core prices have risen by a mere 0.6 percent, the smallest annual rise since the index began in 1957.

This latest round of data would seem to support the Federal Reserve’s recent moves to boost the economy. Earlier this month, the Fed announced that it would purchase $600 billion in Treasury bonds in an effort to lower interest rates and spur spending.