Annual inflation ticked up for a third straight month in December as food, energy costs rose, CPI report showed. But underlying price measure eased.

The Consumer Price Index rose 2.9 percent from a year earlier, but a measure of underlying inflation was more encouraging.

The Labor Department released the inflation report for December, which showed prices were up 2.9% from a year ago, in line with economists expectations and up from 2.7% in November.