As US inflation ticks back up, it could impact the presidential election
Al Jazeera
The fight against inflation is far from over and could reduce the chances of interest rate cuts for this year.
Wednesday’s “disappointing” inflation data in the United States showed a jump from February, dampening expectations of an interest rate cut and raising concerns that inflation could remain stubbornly high.
The data has implications not just for the US Federal Reserve, which sets interest rates, but also for the candidates in the upcoming presidential election.
The core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes volatile food and energy costs, increased 0.4 percent in March from the previous month, according to government data released on Wednesday.
The year-over-year rate was unchanged at 3.8 percent. With food and fuel included, inflation is at 3.5 percent, up from 3.2 percent in February.
While inflation is much lower than the 40-year high of 9.1 percent reached in June 2021, when consumers went on a shopping spree with government cheques handed out during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is still well above the US central bank’s target of 2 percent.
