US prices continued to rise in January, but in a sign of weakening inflationary pressure, the rate of increase was the slowest in nearly three years.

The Commerce Department said on Thursday that the personal consumption expenditures, or PCE, index rose 2.4 percent from a year earlier.

The increase was 0.2 percentage points smaller than the figure for December, translating to the slowest growth since February 2021. The index also stayed below 3 percent for a third consecutive month.

The measure for prices excluding food and energy picked up 2.8 percent. That was 0.1 point lower than the reading for the previous month.

Personal income jumped 1.0 percent, far exceeding market forecasts. Income gains could prompt consumers to spend more, fueling price growth.

The PCE indexes are among the key gauges closely followed by Federal Reserve policymakers to assess domestic inflation.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to testify before Congress next week. Attention is likely to be focused on any comments he makes about recent price moves and future monetary policy, such as when the Fed may start cutting interest rates.