U.S. consumer inflation grew at a much slower pace in November as prices of gasoline and some types of food dropped.

The consumer-price index rose by a moderate 0.2% last month after a 0.6% increase in September, the U.S. Labor Department said today. The slowdown mostly reflected moderating growth in food and energy prices. The core index, which excludes energy and food prices, rose 0.2%, the same as in October.

The numbers matched Wall Street’s expectations.

Consumer prices have risen sharply over the last year. The Labor Department said prices were up 3.5% year-on-year in November, the largest increase since May 2001. Excluding food and energy items, prices were up 2.2% year-on-year.

Those increases, however, mostly reflected the run-up in food and energy prices earlier this year. In the year through November, energy prices were up nearly 20%.

In November, energy prices rose 0.2%, moderating from a 4.2% increase in October, the labor Department said. Gasoline prices fell 1.8% in the biggest decline since July. Prices of natural gas, however, rose 5.4%, the biggest increase since March 2003.

Food prices also grew at a slower pace, climbing 0.2% after a 0.6% increase in October.

In a separate report, the Labor Department said the average weekly earnings of U.S. workers, adjusted for inflation, declined for a second month in a row.