Trimmed-Mean CPI

Regular inflation figures can get thrown around by a handful of prices doing something dramatic, a spike in fuel or a one-off jump in airfares, that don't reflect the broader trend. Trimmed-mean CPI strips out the most extreme risers and fallers each month before averaging the rest, so the result reflects underlying price pressure rather than noise from a couple of volatile categories. Economists and central bankers often lean on this version specifically because it's less likely to whipsaw around based on one loud outlier.