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US Inflation
The government shutdown likely means there won't be an inflation report next month for the first time in more than seven decades, the White House said Friday, leaving Wall Street and the Federal Reserve without crucial information about consumer prices. Because surveyors cannot deploy to the field, the White House has learned there will likely NOT be an inflation release next month for the first time in history, the Trump administration said in an email. Some of the inflation data is collected electronically, but most is gathered in person by government employees who visit stores across the country. The Bureau of Labour Statistics, which prepares the inflation report, has already reduced the data collected each month because the Trump administration's hiring freeze left some cities without surveyors. The announcement follows Friday's release of September inflation data, which showed prices ticked higher but remained lower than many economists had expected. That report, which was ...
US inflation remained elevated last month as the costs of some imported goods rose while rental prices cooled. Consumer prices increased 3 per cent in September from a year earlier, the Labour Department said Friday, up from 2.9 per cent in August. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices also rose 3 per cent, a decline from 3.1 per cent in the previous month. Both figures are above the Federal Reserve's 2 per cent target. The report on the consumer price index is being issued more than a week late because of the government shutdown, now in its fourth week. The Trump administration recalled some Labour Department employees to produce the figures because they are used to set the annual cost-of-living adjustment for roughly 70 million Social Security recipients. The figures reflect a smaller increase than many economists had forecast, and will likely encourage the Federal Reserve to cut its key interest rate when it meets next week for the second time this ...
The government shutdown is delaying another major economic report, leaving policymakers at the Federal Reserve with a cloudier picture even as the economy enters a challenging phase of stubbornly persistent inflation and a sharp slowdown in hiring. The Labour Department's monthly inflation data was scheduled for release Wednesday, but late last week was postponed until October 24. The department is recalling some employees to assemble the data, which was collected before the shutdown began. The figures are needed for the government to calculate the annual cost of living adjustment for tens of millions of recipients of benefit programmes such as Social Security. The shutdown could make things worse for agencies like the Fed if it continues, because government agencies cannot collect the raw data that are then compiled into the monthly reports on jobs, inflation, and other economic trends. The September employment report, for example, which was due to be released October 3 but was no
Gold prices are expected to remain volatile in the coming week as traders weigh domestic festive demand and physical market premiums to key macroeconomic data release and political developments in the US, analysts said. Investors will also closely monitor commentaries by Federal Reserve officials, including Chair Jerome Powell, on Tuesday, which will provide more cues on the trajectory of gold prices in the near term. "In the next week, focus will be on the physical demand for bullion during the festive season in India along with global political and geo-political developments, particularly the passage of the US spending bill and efforts to resume diplomacy on ending the Russia-Ukraine war. These factors are likely to shape gold price trends in the coming months," Pranav Mer, Vice President, EBG - Commodity & Currency Research, JM Financial Services Ltd, said. Mer noted that gold prices closed yet another week on a positive note, but volatility remained elevated with sharp ...
Inflation moved higher last month as the price of gas, groceries, hotel rooms and airfare rose, along with the cost of clothes and used cars. Consumer prices rose 2.9 per cent in August from a year earlier, the Labour Department said Tuesday, up from 2.7 per cent the previous month and the biggest increase since January. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices rose 3.1 per cent, the same as in July. Both figures are above the Federal Reserve's 2 per cent target. The reading is the last data the Fed will receive before its key meeting next week, when policymakers are widely expected to cut their short-term rate to about 4.1 per cent from 4.3 per cent. Still, the figures underscore the challenges the Fed is facing as it experiences relentless pressure from President Donald Trump to cut rates. Even as inflation has ticked higher, recent government reports have also shown that hiring has slowed sharply in recent months and was lower than previously estimated last
US inflation likely ticked higher last month as the Trump administration's import taxes have lifted the price of goods, potentially putting the Federal Reserve in a tough spot when it meets next week. Economists forecast that consumer prices rose 2.9 per cent in August from a year earlier, according to a survey of economists by data provider FactSet. That would be an increase from an annual pace of 2.7 per cent in July. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, core inflation is expected to have increased 3.1 per cent, the same as in July. Both figures are above the Fed's 2 per cent inflation target. The potential increase, while modest, would underscore the challenges the Fed is facing as it experiences relentless pressure from President Donald Trump to reduce its short-term interest rate. Trump hopes that rate cuts will spur more borrowing and spending and boost the economy. Recent government reports have also shown that hiring has slowed sharply in recent months and was lower tha