CPI inflation rate

Full coverage of the stock market as investors digest the inflation report, which showed an easing in the consumer price index.

Gold is up 1.4% this year as investors have sought a measure of security in the precious metal amid concerns about geopolitics and economic strength world-wide. The tech-focused Nasdaq composite was down about 1%. On Monday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said 22% of corn was planted, compared with 50% for the previous-five-year average. On Wednesday, the notes at auction sold at a 2.943% yield. After a bumping trading day, the Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq all ended Wednesday in the red. Industry advisers say that the rate increase will not likely lead many students to change their educational plans. The broader pace of inflation eased slightly last month but remained historically high. The consumer-price index rose to 8.3% in April, slightly above investors' forecasts, easing for the first time in months. Yields then fell, though, as the S&P 500 shed earlier gains and slid more than 1% while investors sought out safer assets. Treasury yields, which rise when bond prices fall, jumped immediately after the Labor Department said that the consumer-price index, excluding volatile food and energy categories, climbed 0.6% in April from the previous month. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate, Brent's U.S. equivalent, rose $5.95 per barrel, or 6%, to $105.71. WTI is up about 41% this year. The results are in.

The consumer price index increased 8.3% annually, down from 8.5% in March, as a drop in gasoline prices offset a continuing run-up in food, rent and other costs ...

Breakfast cereal prices rose 2.4% in April and are up 12.1% from a year ago, and bread costs increased 2% and 9.1% yearly. Consumers’ pivot to more spending on services, along with worker shortages that propelled wages higher, drive up a different set of prices. Rent climbed 0.6% monthly and 4.8% from a year ago. Grocery costs jumped 1% monthly and 10.8% from a year ago. Much of the slowdown in the yearly measure reflected a 6.1% monthly drop in gas prices. Fish was up 0.9% and 13% annually. But the monthly rise in core prices "indicates that underlying inflation pressures are stronger than we had expected." Pork chop prices rose 1.9% monthly and 14% annually. That has begun moderating increases in the price of furniture, appliances and other items. Clothing prices fell 0.8% monthly, lowering the annual rise to 5.4%. But the 3,300-mile trip will cost an extra $550 or so in gas, so they decided to skip it this year. Regular unleaded hit a record $4.37 a gallon Tuesday, up from $4.12 a month ago, according to AAA.

The latest figures — known as the consumer price index — may hold signs that such rapid price growth could be starting to plateau, even as inflation remains at ...

“So you could be creating a lot of economic pain and not getting the result.” And policymakers are especially focused on how the housing market responds to the Fed policies. But that message has found less and less traction as inflation becomes the dominant economic issue of the coronavirus era. Rate hikes are a blunt tool and can’t target specific issues in the economy. But even as Fed policymakers race to control inflation and cool the economy, the path is dangerously tricky. On Tuesday, Biden said tackling inflation was his “top domestic priority” and blamed “Mr. Putin’s war in Ukraine” as the key reason for today’s high prices. To save on the cost of staff and space, the organization consolidated operations and now cooks meals out of one kitchen. The energy index dropped 2.7 percent in April, after jumping 11 percent in March. The gasoline index also fell 6.1 percent, after rising 18.3 percent in March. (Still, compared to last year, the energy index is up 30.3 percent and the gasoline index increased 43.6 percent.) “A lot of the patterns I’ve seen, regarding the pandemic, are that it has caused financial stress,” Reynolds said. The government’s main tool to combat inflation rests with the Fed, which can raise interest rates to make an array of loans more expensive. For example, shelter accounts for roughly one-third of the basket of goods and services used to measure the consumer price index. No matter the exact figures, economic officials agree that it will take months of data to assess which way prices are heading.

Consumer price index reveals costs rising by a monthly rate of 0.3% in April, down from 1.2% in March, the first fall since August 2021.

The rising cost of living has become a leading political issue as the US prepares for November’s midterm elections. The Biden administration has made attempts to bring down prices. The pace of rate rises, and fears that they may trigger a recession, have spooked investors and sent stock markets reeling. Kroszner said global issues including the war in Ukraine and China’s Covid woes had combined with rising rates to deliver a “one-two punch” to the US economy. A booming house market has made housing unaffordable for many Americans, especially people of color, and 49% of people recently told Pew Research that affordable housing is a large problem in their community. The so-called core-price index – which excludes the volatile categories of food and energy – increased 0.6% on the month, up from March’s 0.3% gain.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8% after the CPI report. The S&P 500 added 0.8%, while the Nasdaq composite gained 0.6%, as markets continue to adjust.

Prices for new vehicles jumped 1.1% on the month, while rising 13.2% from a year ago. March, while rising 7.2% from a year ago. Prices for food away from home rose 0.6% in April vs. Demand for used cars has gotten a boost amid the global chip shortage that has snagged production for new autos. Russia's Ukraine invasion threw gas on the inflationary problem in the U.S. and around the globe, sparking a selloff. After the CPI report, the 10-year Treasury yield initially moved above 3%, but then fell 7 basis points to 2.92%, perhaps on economic growth concerns. It remains to be seen whether inflation beginning to come down from its peak can create a sustainable rally. As of Tuesday's close, the Dow was off 12.6% from its record closing high on Jan. 4. Shortly before the close, the Dow Jones fell 0.9%, the S&P 500 1.6% and the Nasdaq 3.2%. The latter includes government purchases on behalf of consumers such as by Medicare and Medicaid. It also factors in a substitution effect, when high prices lead consumers to adapt purchasing behavior. The 0.6% monthly rise in the core CPI inflation rate, if sustained, would add up to a 7.2% annual core inflation rate. Stocks were initially volatile following the inflation, but the Dow Jones and other major indexes soon turned decisively lower in Wednesday's stock market action.

CPI increase of 8.3% in April includes rise in core inflation and prompts fall in equities.

The yearly rate of U.S. inflation fell to 8.3% in April to mark the first decline in eight months, but the upward pressure on prices is unlikely to ease...

The cost of clothing fell for the first time in seven months and used-vehicle prices also declined. Looking ahead: “The slowdown in CPI was largely due to March’s decline in gasoline prices after April’s surge. The rate of inflation over the past year slowed to 8.3% from 8.5% — the first time it’s declined since last summer. Shelter costs account for a third or more of a typical household budget. And lockdowns in China could further disrupt the shipment of critical supplies that American companies need to produce their goods and services. Consumers got a temporary break from higher gas prices in April. They fell 6.1% last month. Oil prices surged after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and then leveled off in April. Food prices jumped almost 1% last month. Prices are climbing again. The cost of rent and housing both rose sharply again in April and helped explain the big increase in the core rate of inflation. It’s already raised rates twice this year. The increase in the core rate over the past year slowed to 6.2% from from a 40-year high of 6.5% in March.

The inflation rate was little changed from March to April, a potential sign that the rapid growth in the cost of goods and services may soon taper off.

"But the pressure on policymakers to continue hiking by [one-half percent] per meeting won’t be sustained at its current fever-pitch when inflation is falling," he said. And although mortgage prices have climbed this year, the 30-year mortgage interest rate fell from 5.64 percent last week to 5.4 percent this week. "But with goods shortages tentatively easing and signs that wage growth is set to cool, we still think a more pronounced drop back in inflation will allow officials to slow the pace of tightening in the second half of the year." Last week, the Federal Reserve announced it had raised its key interest rate by 0.5 percent as part of its ongoing effort to cool off the economy, and more rate hikes are expected. Biden called the current inflationary environment a global problem, pointing to the war in Ukraine and pandemic-related supply chain issues for rising costs. "Excluding a decline in energy prices — which appears outdated by this point — the increases remain widespread. "However, when we do see inflation pressures simmer down, mortgage rates will reverse course quickly — particularly if the economy is slowing, too.” Last week, the BLS reported monthly wage growth had decelerated to 0.3 percent from 0.5 percent, though on an annual basis it was unchanged at 5.5 percent growth. Still, households are feeling the squeeze of rising prices. At least one economist believes inflation peaked in March. In a note to clients Tuesday, Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics research group, said that while at least one more 0.5 percent rate hike is likely for June, the Fed may pause in July. April’s core inflation measure — the change in the price of goods and services not including food and energy — was 0.6 percent compared to 0.3 percent one month ago in March. The inflation rate was little changed from March to April, a potential sign that the rapid growth in the cost of goods and services may soon taper off.

At last, consumers are starting to see some relief: The rate of inflation for consumer prices declined in April, according to highly-anticipated Labor ...

If inflation is slowing, aggressive rate hikes beyond 0.25% increments are less likely — but the Fed has already suggested that 0.50% hikes could happen in June and July. Barring unforeseen events, Mahedy says, a recession in 2022 is "very unlikely" despite widespread concerns. And I was left holding my breath for next month's [report], because there's not enough there to make me think [inflation is] going one way or the other," he says. These hikes increase the cost of borrowing, which can slow down economic growth. The CPI numbers suggest that despite recent gas price surges, there are limits to how quickly those prices can grow. "For this report, I was holding my breath.

The consumer price index came off a run of 40-year highs last month as energy prices retreated from their own streak of monthly increases.

Overall consumer prices rose 0.3% last month, the Labor Department reported Wednesday, a sharp drop from March’s 1.2% increase. Despite the cool-down, signs of hot inflation abound. For the year, prices rose at an 8.3% annual pace last month, down from a four-decade high 8.5% pace in March. Economists had expected prices to rise 0.2% in April and 8.1% over the year.