Investing.com - U.S. consumer spending edged up last month but overall inflation retreated, data on Monday showed. Consumer spending ticked up 0.1% in February the Commerce Department said. Inflation, as measured by the PCE index, dipped 0.1% last month, due largely to lower energy costs. The PCE index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation barometer, rose just 1% year-over-year. The data indicated that the Fed will raise interest rates only gradually this year.