Cooling July Inflation Sets Stage for Fed's September Rate Cut
Cooling July Inflation Sets Stage for Feds September Rate Cut
Data marks the first time the CPI edges firmly below 3% since early 2021
By Sam Goldfarb and Nick Timiraos
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Nick.Timiraos@wsj.com
Updated Aug. 14, 2024 4:30 pm ET
The consumer-price index rose 2.9% in July from a year earlier, the Labor Department said. Photo: Richard B. Levine/Zuma Press
Inflation extended a run of cooler readings in July, sealing the case for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates at its meeting next month.
The consumer-price index rose 2.9% from a year earlier, the Labor Department said Wednesday, the lowest reading since 2021 and slightly below economists expectations of 3%. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy items, was 3.2%, also a three-year low.
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