US Inflation Exceeds Forecasts in August

Introduction

US inflation exceeded forecasts in August after fuel prices rose, but underlying price pressures eased.

Headline Rate of Consumer Prices

The headline rate of consumer prices rose 3.7 per cent year on year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, up from 3.2 per cent in July and higher than consensus forecasts of 3.6 per cent. On a monthly basis, prices increased 0.6 per cent.

Impact of Petrol Prices

More than half of the monthly increase was driven by a jump in petrol prices.

Core Inflation Rate

However, the annual rate of core inflation, which strips out volatile food and energy costs and is closely followed by central banks, fell to 4.3 per cent from 4.7 per cent in July.

Fed’s Efforts to Control Inflation

The Fed has lifted interest rates 11 times since March 2022 in an attempt to bring inflation back towards its 2 per cent target.