Inflation Rises .4%; Energy Cost Blamed : Economy: November increase dampens hope that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates.

Stubborn price increases for services kept consumer inflation at 0.4% last month despite a drop in gasoline costs, the government said today in a report economists suggested could discourage the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates.

The seasonally adjusted increase in the Labor Department’s consumer price index, which translated into an annual inflation rate of 4.9%, followed a brisk 0.5% rise in October and relatively modest hikes from June through September.

November’s price spurt was slightly higher than many analysts had been expecting.

The government blamed the rise on a jump in natural gas and electricity costs and an increase in prices at supermarket checkout counters for beef, eggs, fresh vegetables and dairy products.

Through the first 11 months of this year, consumer prices have risen at an annual rate of 4.6%, up only slightly from the 4.4% price gains in 1988 and 1987.

However, the year-to-date figure masks a roller-coaster ride that saw prices rising at a 6.7% annual rate for the first five months of the year, moderating through the summer and then returning to about average for the last two months.

The November inflation number, a notch above the 0.3% rise anticipated by many analysts, dampened hopes in financial markets that the Federal Reserve Board would lower interest rates this week.

Leading the November advance in consumer inflation was a 0.6% boost in food prices, the steepest since May. Dairy products jumped 1.7%, the third consecutive sharp increase. The price of fruits and vegetables soared 1.8%, the second big gain in a row.

Economists are attributing the dairy price hikes to last year’s drought, which caused many farmers to slaughter milk cows.

Gasoline prices fell 2.1% in November following a 0.9% rise in October. However, other forms of energy were more expensive. The index for natural gas and electricity rose 1.5%, while fuel oil edged up 0.2% following a big 2.5% gain a month earlier.

Overall, energy prices fell 0.1% last month. Prices excluding the volatile food and energy sectors, a measure considered a better gauge of underlying inflationary pressures, were up 0.4% following a 0.5% gain in October.

The cost of medical care, which has been increasing at an 8.5% rate over the last year, was up 0.8% in November, in line with previous increases.

Clothing costs edged up 0.1% in November, following two months of steep increases that coincided with the introduction of fall lines.

In other areas, new-car prices rose 0.8%, tobacco was down 0.1% and entertainment costs climbed 0.2%.