This week will provide fresh data on inflation with price levels remaining above the Federal Reserve’s target.
by Tim Smart
USNews.com
Inflation, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.
Back in 2022, when the consumer price index hit the 9% level, Democrats argued it was “transitory” and would subside after the supply chain disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic disappeared. Republicans branded the runup in prices “Bidenflation.”
Yet, a survey of consumer sentiment that came out Friday showed Republicans believe President-elect Donald Trump will crush inflation while Democrats want to buy things now before they cost more.
Economists – and the Federal Reserve – however, are going to look at the data and this week will provide more of it. On Wednesday, the Labor Department will issue the CPI – a measure of how prices for a common basket of goods behave over time – for November with expectations for an increase of 0.3% for the month and an annual rate of 2.7%. That would be a slight increase from November’s 0.2% and 2.6% readings.