U.S. consumer prices were steady in October, indicating the recent surge in economic growth isn’t fanning inflation.

The U.S. Labor Department says the consumer-price index was unchanged for the first time in five months as a slump in energy and transportation prices offset gains in food and housing prices.

The core index, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose a scant 0.2%. In annual terms, the core increase was 1.3%, up a tenth of a percentage point from September.

BMO Nesbitt Burns reports that used car prices fell 3%, holding down the core. “The drop in used car prices is now more than 10% in the last year, which has exerted material slowing impact on CPI that many regard as spurious,” it says. “Core prices have risen at a 1.7% rate over the last six months, up from just 0.9% the previous six months. A rise in the year-to-year line everyone watches is now baked in the cake.”

“The increases in core inflation make this report stronger than anticipated, but real inflation threats remain well off into the future,” comments RBC Financial.

RBC also reports that the retail chain store sales index published by the Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi fell 0.8% in the week ended November 15th following increases in the previous two months. “Although it’s difficult to attach any weight to a single reading, since weekly reports are far to volatile, trends in this number can signal shifts in the direction of consumer spending. In the current environment, such shifts would indeed prove telling, as consumers can no longer depend on tax rebate cheques and mortgage refinancings to fund their spending,” it says.