© Reuters U.S. February CPI annual rate fell to 6% as expected, but core CPI sparked anxiety again
Investing.com – Data released on Tuesday (14th) showed that the slowdown in the United States continued, but the pace of core CPI growth rekindled jitters as housing rents rose sharply.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics said it rose 0.4 percent in February, a slowdown from January’s 0.5 percent rise. The annual rate fell to 6.0% from 6.4%, down a third from a peak of more than 9% last June.
However, the current inflation rate is still three times the Fed’s 2% target. In the war against inflation, the Fed still has no way out.
Meanwhile, the reading, which strips out high volatility factors for energy and food, came in at 0.5%, an acceleration from 0.4% in the previous month. However, the drop from 5.6% to 5.5% was in line with expectations and well below the headline CPI annual rate.
Breaking it down, housing costs rose 0.8 percent, contributing more than 70 percent of the total increase in prices. Food remains a headache for consumers and the Fed. Household food prices rose relatively modestly by 0.3% month-to-month, but rose by 10.2% year-on-year, and the price of dining out rose by 0.6% month-to-month, and rose by 8.4% year-on-year.
Mike Konczal, director of macroeconomic research at the Roosevelt Institute, pointed out on social media that the core CPI is still running high, and the core price index is only moving sideways, not falling as the Fed hopes.
After the release of the data, the price of gold and the U.S. dollar index fluctuated sharply, once falling to $1,900, but then regained the lost ground, and are currently at $1,910.01 per ounce. After jumping higher, it fell back to 103.63.
(One-minute chart of spot gold)
(Five-minute chart of US dollar index)
【Welcome to followFacebook/@Investing.comChinese Websiteas well asTwitter/@HkInvesting, share more fresh ideas! 】
recommended reading
Editor: Liu Chuan
