The headline consumer price index fell 0.4% from May to June, marking its largest one-month decline in more than six years. CNBC anchor Rick Santelli reacted in real time, noting that minus four-tenths of a percent would be the biggest negative drop since April 2020, during the COVID period. The core CPI, which excludes food and energy, came in flat at zero, equaling the smallest increase since January 2021. White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett called it the best inflation report in six years and criticized Bloomberg-surveyed economists who had expected only a 0.1% decline. Despite the monthly drop, consumer prices remained 3.5% higher than a year earlier, and since early 2020 the overall CPI has climbed more than 28%, with food and shelter indexes each surging over 30%.