U S Inflation

US consumer sentiment fell slightly in May for the fifth straight month, surprising economists, as Americans increasingly worry that President Donald Trump's trade war will worsen inflation. The preliminary reading of the University of Michigan's closely watched consumer sentiment index, released Friday, declined 2.7 per cent on a monthly basis to 50.8, the second-lowest level in the nearly 75-year history of the survey. The only lower reading was in June 2022. Since January, sentiment has tumbled nearly 30 per cent. Americans have largely taken a sour view about where the economy is headed in the wake of the Trump administration's imposition of huge import duties, which threaten to slow growth and push up prices. In recent weeks the White House has pulled back on its most draconian policies, though average duties are still high by historical standards. Consumers' outlooks are also sharply divided by their political views, which has caused some economists to question the survey's ..

The poll also revealed that 38% of those surveyed held a favourable opinion of tech billionaire Elon Musk, who has been actively involved in Donald Trump's government restructuring efforts

Rising inflation was attributed to bad weather rather than stronger domestic demand, a jump in imports reflected frontloaded chip purchases before expected U.S. technology curbs

Inflation in the United States cooled in June for a third straight month, a sign that the worst price spike in four decades is steadily fading and may soon usher in interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. In a better-than-expected report from the government, consumer prices declined 0.1 per cent from May to June after having remained flat the previous month, the government reported Thursday. And measured from 12 months earlier, prices were up 3 per cent in June, down from 3.3 per cent in May. The latest inflation readings could help convince the Fed's policymakers that inflation is returning to its 2 per cent target. A brief pickup in inflation early this year had caused Fed officials to scale back their expectations for interest rate cuts. They responded by saying they would need to see several months of mild price increases to feel confident enough enough to cut their key rate from its 23-year high. The June inflation data will qualify as as another installment of the more goo

The US Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates unchanged in today's announcement. With that, all eyes will on whether it adjusts its forecasts for potential rate cuts this year

While the economy is expected to slow this year as a result of the cumulative impact of 525 basis points worth of interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve since March 2022 to tame inflation

The yuan slid to a two-week low versus the dollar after US President Joe Biden unveiled steep tariff increases on an array of Chinese imports

Dollar climbed to seven-week peaks on Friday, after data showed US inflation accelerated while consumer spending rebounded last month

Federal Reserve officials at their last meeting saw very few signs that inflation pressures were abating before raising their benchmark interest rate by a substantial three-quarters of a point for a fourth straight time. Rising wages, the result of a strong job market, combined with weak productivity growth, were inconsistent" with the Fed's ability to meet its 2% target for annual inflation, the policymakers concluded, according to the minutes of their Nov. 1-2 meeting released Wednesday. At that meeting, the Fed officials also expressed uncertainty about how long it might take for their rate hikes to slow the economy enough to tame inflation. Still, some of the policymakers expressed hope that falling commodity prices and the unsnarling of supply chain bottlenecks should contribute to lower inflation in the medium term.'' There were widespread expectations that ongoing rate increases would be essential'' to keep Americans from expecting inflation to continue indefinitely, the ...

The S&P BSE Sensex and Nifty50 indices hit 52-week lows on Thursday, as economists fear a recession could be around the corner for the US. Markets watchers see more pain ahead for the Indian markets

Over the next 12 months, Morgan Stanley forecasts range-bound markets for equities, credit, yields, and the US dollar

The Fed last week raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point to a range of 0.25% to 0.5% from near zero

The mid-and small-cap indices on the BSE cracked over 3% last week. While the overall nervousness in the market is a reason for the poor show, analysts say the trend may soon reverse on the bourses

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Asian shares plunged to their lowest in nearly 15 months, short-term U.S. yields hit 23-month highs and the dollar strengthened on Thursday after the Federal Reserve's chairman signalled plans to steadily tighten policy.

The consumer price index climbed 7% in 2021, the largest 12-month gain since June 1982, according to Labor Department data

The dollar's index against six other major currencies was steady at 91.793, having recovered from Friday's low of 91.524 hit in the wake of the inflation readings

Voices crying about inflation and currency debasement should be treated with caution.

The Federal Reserve has a 2% inflation target and tracks an inflation measure which is currently at 1.7%